Dawn
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09:32 Nov 08, 2025
“The judiciary must be independent of every other power; otherwise, there is no liberty, no security, no justice.” — John Adams Centuries after John Adams spoke these words, their resonance feels almost prophetic today, as the government tables the 27th Constitutional Amendment. For those who have witnessed the slow, deliberate erosion of judicial independence in Pakistan, this moment feels less like reform and more like resignation. The judiciary, already weakened and weary after the 26th Amendment, now stands on the precipice of collapse. What is being framed as an administrative restructuring — the creation of a separate constitutional court — in truth, threatens to hollow out the very authority of an institution that has long stood as the final line of defence between power and the people. It is not merely an amendment to a document; it is an assault on the idea that justice must stand apart from politics. The judiciary is not an accessory to government; it is the conscience of the nation. When that consc...