It is being considered at the highest level in the Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan-led government that emergency may be promulgated to overcome any untoward situation arising due to developments regarding the extension in service for Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to perform actions or impose policies that it would normally not be permitted to undertake. A government can declare such a state during a disaster, civil unrest, or armed conflict.
According to The News, no conclusive decision has been made by the high-ups concerned since most of the senior officials are dissenting with the proposal, but the possibility of imposition of emergency cannot be entirely ruled out.
The report quoted sources as saying that pro-emergency segment of the leaders was of the view that “positive outcome was attained in the past through imposition of emergency-plus”, and suggested experimenting the same for a short time now since it wouldn’t be harmful.
“It will also help the government create harmony in society and chaos could be averted that will be helpful in mitigating suffering of the people,” the pro-emergency leaders reportedly said.
STATE OF EMERGENCY 2007:
A state of emergency was declared on November 3, 2007, by former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf, which lasted until December 15, 2007, during which the constitution remained suspended.
When the state of emergency was declared, Musharraf controversially held both positions of president and COAS. He later resigned as army chief 25 days into the emergency on November 28.
The state of emergency and its responses are generally attributed to the controversies surrounding the re-election of Musharraf during the presidential election on October 6, 2007, including his holding of both offices of president and army chief at the time.
Then Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry reacted promptly to the emergency declaration, convening a seven-member bench which issued an interim order against the action. He also directed the armed forces of Pakistan not to obey any illegal orders. Subsequently, the 111th brigade of Pakistan army entered the Supreme Court (SC) building and removed Chaudhry as well as several other judges and arrested them.
It was announced earlier that the state of emergency would likely end in late November or early December 2007. After being sworn in for a second presidential term on November 29, 2007, Musharraf immediately declared that the state of emergency would end on December 16, 2007, although the emergency actually ended one day earlier, on December 15, 2007.
Aftermaths of the emergency include the high treason case against Musharraf.
