The Verdict
ZAB case: Pros and cons

ZAB case: Pros and cons

How would setting the record straight, so to speak, help the nation in general or the large community of citizens?

Bilal Ahmad April 24, 2011

After hearing the case and upholding an earlier verdict of the Lahore High Court in the Mukhtaran Mai case, the Supreme Court will hear the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto reference case and it will be a historic moment.

I say historic because it will measure the Pakistan Peoples Party’s success in helping set the record straight. An iconic leader, the first democratically-elected prime minister and founder of the PPP, Mr Bhutto was and still is revered by many. Maybe this is why setting the record straight becomes even more important.

The party followers will literally dance and revel in joy if the Supreme Court makes the finding that ZAB was wrongfully hanged. Overall, the effect on the PPP’s popularity will be positive and it will stand vindicated in the eyes of even those who are not its supporters. For a brief lull, people may forget the drone strikes, bomb blasts, terrorism, inflation, loadshedding, target killings and so on. The president will be able to take considerable mileage out of the verdict and will use it to travel to Larkana to deliver a motivational and heartwarming speech. He will then be justified in saying that “democracy is the best revenge”, with Bilawal by his side.

The above is of course the view of those who are for the government’s action. But then there is the other side to this: there are many who say that a government in a country like Pakistan should have better things to do than digging up the past, especially when the result is bound to generate controversy.

The argument goes that how could setting the record straight, so to speak, help the nation in general or the large community of citizens. Yes, the PPP’s supporters and sympathisers will want this to happen but the ordinary Pakistani will wonder what that would achieve for him and how it will have any impact on the daily grind that is his life.

WRITTEN BY:
Bilal Ahmad Designation: Sub-Editor English Paper Department: Business

The views expressed by the writer and the reader comments do not necassarily reflect the views and policies of the Express Tribune.

COMMENTS (8)

Sam Boy | 12 years ago | Reply I say the court should charge the Zardari-Awan-Mailk trio for the assasination of BB and hang them too. This is one opportunity the courts have to redeem themselves.

Ali | 12 years ago | Reply This case is a horrendous waste of money. Do the courts have nothing better to do with their time? Have you ever heard of poor people ever getting justice? Unless you have money and influence the courts are a complete waste of time. Why are lawyers able to drag cases through court endlessly and charge their client ridiculous amounts of money? Is this what you call justice? It is not un heard of for disputes to last decades in Pakistani courts. To me this sounds like a broken system, and it needs fixing. ZAB died along time ago. Writing meaningless poems about him wil not feed any hungry person, shelter any homless person, educate a child. Infact the money being spent on this case would be better spent doing the former.

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Saad Qureshi | 13 years ago | Reply The impact of this case is multi-dimensional. On one hand even it serves good for PPP and it workers then on other side it will also help to keep the record straight. Why to correct history? Is an important question and it will surely help nation to develop the ability to rectify the past and to develop a sense that what happened was not good. This is not the only case to be rectified rather all the blunders of past should be discussed. I don’t know why people think it useless to reconcile the history?? By cleaning our history we will be more clear about our future and present. New generations must know that what Zia Ul Haq has did with Pakistan’s Theocracy was good or bad?, Role of Army was positive or not?, What the religious parties did in past( even today) in the name of Islam was right or wrong? What actually happened with East Pakistan? Were the wars with India defensive or offensive? If we didn’t rectified the history then all the so called stakeholders will continue to rule us on the names of Shaheed or Ghazi.

Asim Mubashir | 13 years ago | Reply Let's us use the taxpayers money to bring ZABs case to life again. Yay. It will prove so much, the world will become a better place. Only a few thousand other people waiting for justice will be pushed further down the queue. I don't see how this helps anyone's cause other than that of the PPP and the Bhutto family. You would be naive to think they were all angels in their time.

Mr D | 13 years ago | Reply ya and then the PPP should promise setting the record straight on BB murder case as well

Saad | 13 years ago | Reply It is amusing how the same Supreme Court can spend rididulous amount of time and money to spend on futile cases like reviewing a Constitutional amendment or contempt notices against judges (which could have been avoided by proceeding through the Supreme Judicial Commission) and by acting on self written precedences it is all for the greater good. It can spend even more ridiculous amount of public money on protecting the rights of a particular media house which eventually withdrew the case when it sense its case was too weak but wasting public money in the process. It spends similar time in giving reprieve to Nawaz Sharif and above all judges themselves by wasting public money by holding court at midnight as well as consistently holding luncheons for each other for their own personal gains. Yet when anything remotely related to the PPP comes up there is a sudden realisation of public money being wasted. The history needs to be corrected and its about time we do it. Our independence day is 15th August not 14th August, the Lahore Resolution was not passed on 23rd but 24th March, 23rd March is the our Republic Day when the reign of Queen Elizabeth the second ended over Pakistan. We and not India was the agressor in the wars of 1965 and 1971. And Bhutto the first elected Prime Minister remains a murderer until rectified. It is a long list but atleast this is a start.

amna naseer | 13 years ago | Reply there may be some who feel that this will provide nothing more than a chance for zardari to make a motivational speech when the supreme court gives a verdict in favour of the view that bhutto's trial was an unfair one, but it is important that the 'record be set straight' as the authour puts it. It's true that this won't be an antidote to the various problems that pakistanis have to face on a daily basis, but it's also true that there is enough evidence to suggest that the judges in bhutto's case were biased against him. two wrongs don't make a right. historical injustices have been too often ignored in the past and it's about time at lease one of them is is addressed. in fact bhutto's case should act as a starting point, and other wrongs committed in the 63-year history of the country should also be looked into.

Zaman | 13 years ago | Reply very well-written..Though i can't tell your own opinion on it..

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