Justice Mansoor releases additional note on Bhutto reference

Islamabad: The senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, issued an additional note on the Bhutto reference.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah wrote in the additional note that Justice Durab Patel courageously dissented in the Bhutto case, and refused to take oath under Zia’s interim constitution. The courage of the judge can be gauged by his resistance to external pressure.

He wrote in the additional note that in an authoritarian era, judges should remember that their real strength is not to remain in office but to maintain independence. Delays in confronting authoritarian interference can prove fatal to the rule of law.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah further wrote that intrusions should be immediately resisted and reformed. The role of the judiciary is to defend justice.