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Over the past few months, retired Justice Markandey Katju of the Indian Supreme Court has expressed concern over the trajectory of Pakistan’s Supreme Court through its exercise of judicial review. He graciously agreed to discuss these issues for Dawn.com, as well as recommend a judgment he wrote while on India’s Supreme Court that could be useful for Pakistani jurists to explore.

The practice of judicial review exists in Commonwealth countries, including India and Pakistan and allows the court to assess the constitutionality of laws and acts by public officials. Justice Katju and other legal scholars have argued that the overuse of judicial review can lead to structural instability in a democracy and subvert of the people’s will. Katju explained the need for judicial restraint in his opinion for the case Government of Andhra Pradesh & Ors vs Smt. P. Laxmi Devi.

The opinion relies on the theory of renowned jurist Professor James B. Thayer in asserting that “the court can declare a statute to be unconstitutional only when there can be no manner of doubt that it is flagrantly unconstitutional.” Thus, the court’s presumption should be in favor of approving laws passed by the people’s representatives, while remaining vigilant for any action by government that could violate their fundamental rights.

In Pakistan, over the past few years, the presumption by the apex court has weighed against the PPP-led parliament, leading to the dismissal of several laws and the disqualification of the prime minister. The court acted rightfully in some instances, but if their judgments are seen collectively, they seem to display an inflexible attitude that eliminates the possibility of judicial deference for the decisions of elected leaders.

Yet, the court has refuted claims that it is on a “collision course” with the elected branch of government. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry stated that those wishing for a clash between the judiciary and other institutions should remember that “such a clash would never take place.” He went onto state that “democratic governments will function in this unfortunate country” and that the judiciary would work cooperatively with elected officials.

It seems that the court is taking notice of its structural role in a democratic system, which requires limits on the exercise of judicial review and a level of deference for elected officials.  In the Laxmi Devi case, the Indian Supreme Court cited to American jurist Alexander Bickel who asserted that judicial review was a counter-majoritarian force, because it “thwarts the will of the representatives of the people; [the court] exercises control, not on behalf of the prevailing majority, but against it."  Justice Katju cited to the probing questions of jurist Wallace Mendelson: “Are any nine men (Supreme Court judges) wise enough and good enough to wield such power over the lives of millions? …. [I]f the Supreme Court is to be the ultimate policy-making body without political accountability how is it to avoid the corrupting effects of raw power? Can the court avoid the self-inflicted wounds that have marked other episodes of judicial imperialism?”

Allegations of judicial imperialism, or a judicial coup surfaced against Pakistan’s court in recent months due to its unilateral dismissal of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. Gilani was removed by the court after refusing to write a letter reinstating Pakistan’s interest in a Swiss case against President Asif Ali Zardari.  Though the court may have had the right to hold the Prime Minister in contempt, the Constitution required his disqualification to be executed by the Speaker of Parliament and the Election Commission under Article 63(2). Justice Katju wrote that the dismissal of Prime Minister Gilani by the Supreme Court was improper because “the Prime Minister holds office as long he has the confidence of Parliament, not confidence of the Supreme Court.”

Some argue that the Justices set up a dangerous precedent with this decision, but the court has recently addressed this critique by exercising judicial restraint in the case of newly appointed Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf.  Many expected the court to repeat its removal of Gilani by holding PM Ashraf in contempt of court, ratcheting up the judicial showdown. However, the court granted Ashraf an extension to look into the matter, and assured him that if the letter was written to the Swiss authorities, the Supreme Court would “facilitate the government and “take care of any anticipated effect.”