Darkest | Pakistan

Lawyers and politicians alike lamented the resignations of two Supreme Court judges, Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, in the wake of the 27th Constitutional Amendment’s passage as a “dark day” for the country’s judicial history. Both judges had called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi in separate letters to summon a full court meeting and judicial conference to hold a debate on the 27th Constitutional Amendment. In his resignation letter today, Justice Shah said that “staying on would not only amount to silent acquiescence in a constitutional wrong, but would also mean continuing to sit in a court whose constitutional voice has been muted,” while Justice Minallah regretted that the Constitution he swore to uphold was “no more”. Here is what the lawyers and politicians had to say on the departure of the two judges. ‘Darkest day’ Lawyer Mirza Moiz Baig said today marked the “darkest day” in our judicial history. “Not only has the Supreme Court lost two of its greatest jurists, but the passa...