The Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended the licence to practice of the PM’s Legal Adviser Dr Babar Awan. Dr Awan, who had resigned as Law Minister to contest the presidential reference on the Bhutto murder case, cannot appear in that case. Dr Awan is being asked to answer the contempt charge made in relation to his press conference after the Supreme Court’s verdict in the memogate case, where he announced that the federal government would not set up the investigative commission ordered by the Supreme Court. He is the second member of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s cabinet to have to answer a contempt notice, after the Prime Minister himself, who will appear before the court on Thursdau.
Dr Awan’s act of contempt was an act of bravado, because it did not really help the government. His speech apparently contained intent to refuse to obey a court order, apart from maligning the court. The Supreme Court has set up the commission which the government did not, despite Dr Awan’s announcement. Though Dr Awan succeeded to the Law Ministry because of his loyalty to the President, his own antics have actually benefited him less. It is also to be noticed that while the Supreme Court initially exercised restraint, it did not take kindly to the repeated flouting of its verdicts by the federal government, and is not only taking action against contemners in the highest reaches of government, but is doing so broadly, having moved, in the space of a day, from the prime ministerial level to that of his advisers.
Dr Awan faces not just removal from the Bhutto case, which he resigned from the cabinet to contest, but also disqualification as a Senator, if he is convicted of contempt. He should therefore do whatever is necessary to purge himself of his contempt and satisfy the court. He should also keep in mind that others need to avoid contempt only to reach the assemblies, but his livelihood as a lawyer depends on avoiding it. The party to which Dr Awan belongs, the PPP, should also contemplate whether the deeds of a single individual are worth the so-called sacrifices of senior members. If the Gilani government intends, in the phrase of the law courts, to purge itself of the contempt, it should buckle down to ensuring that not only the court verdicts are obeyed, but are seen to be obeyed.