THE SUPREME COURT OF PAKISTAN AND INSTITUTIONALIZATION: THE CASE STUDY OF NATIONAL RECONCILIATION ORDINANCE

Abstract

The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) is one of the pillars of the Government of Pakistan, which is not only a player in the game of governance, but also has the capacity to rewrite the rules of the game in favor of institutionalization. Various organizations of the state started organizing themselves around rules and hence gave rise to an institutionalized form of constitutional governance. In case of NRO, SCP upheld supremacy of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973, independent of political considerations. It’s emphasis on the constitution has driven the process of governance in the country in the direction of institutionalization. This research aims to discover the institutional role of Supreme Court of Pakistan in good governance through its verdict(s) on National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO). The way in which stability, coherence, adaptability, and autonomy have been achieved by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the said case will be traced and analyzed.