By
Qamar Bashir
Former Press Secretary to the President
Former Press Minister to the Embassy of Pakistan to France
Former MD, SRBC
Who would have thought that behind the innocent baby face, glittering and sparkling eyes, and enchanting smile of a 31-year-old young married woman lies a hardcore criminal, a terrorist, a lawbreaker, and a violent person who would become one of the biggest threats to national security and safety? The entire state machinery and law enforcement personnel has deployed all the arsenals at their disposal to keep this criminal and terrorist girl in jail, despite release orders from various courts in the country, the latest being from the Lahore High Court on July 10, 2024.
Sanam Javaid, who can deceive anyone with her innocent face and legendary defiant smile, which adorns her face like bright sunshine, could have fooled anyone—but not the all-powerful state of our country. The state, rightly so, slapped her with multiple charges and arrested her several times since the events of May 9, 2023, aiming to deprive her of that bright smile. Unfortunately for the state, it has so far failed to do so, but it will continue to use whatever power it has to achieve its objectives.
This tiny but deceptive girl has been charged under Sections 435 and 439 of the Cr.P.C. and under FIR No. 823/23 dated May 10, 2023. She faces charges for offenses under Sections 302, 324, 353, 427, 431, 186, 148, 149, 505, 188, and 109 of the PPC, read with Section 16 of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960, and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997. Of course, if her smile did not break after these punitive measures, the state would continue to use one weapon after another until she agrees to trade her smile for her freedom. Interestingly, her smile becomes even brighter with each passing day, presenting a further challenge to the state.
The state, in all its cleverness, played a game of cat and mouse. The IG of Punjab Police, who has mastered the art of retaining his coveted position and has become indispensable to the government due to his ability to keep all declared enemies of the state behind bars, committed to the Lahore High Court that the girl with the smile was involved in only two cases. Yet, he successfully circumvented court orders by registering seven additional cases on similar charges in different police stations only in Lahore. He, being very wise, circumvented Section 177 of the Cr.P.C., which clearly states, “every offense shall ordinarily be inquired into and tried by a Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction it was committed.”
But when she was bailed out in all of them, she was dragged first to Mianwali, then to Musakhel, followed by Sargodha, and then Gujranwala. When she got her release from Gujranwala by the Lahore High Court, she was again arrested and taken to Islamabad, and later she may be shifted to Quetta, Balochistan. Her ability to be present at various places miles apart and commit similar crimes simultaneously clearly reflects that she either has a time machine, can make copies of herself, or possesses some kind of extraterrestrial powers. We are fortunate that the state has arrested her and clipped her powers; otherwise, the country could have suffered irreversible losses by now.
In its duet versus Smile case, the state might consider taking her to AJK, GB, or even a foreign country, despite knowing that a person who allegedly commits a crime in one jurisdiction cannot commit the same crime at the same date and time in various jurisdictions miles apart.
The state has skillfully circumvented Article 9 of the Constitution, which guarantees that no person would be deprived of life or liberty save in accordance with the law. It has also frustrated Article 10, which safeguards citizens from unlawful arrest and detention. Furthermore, it has offended Article 13, which provides that no person shall be prosecuted or punished for the same offense more than once. It has set aside Article 9, covering personal liberty, and Article 4, which enshrines the inalienable right of every citizen to enjoy the protection of law and be treated in accordance with the law. The state has successfully kept the Girl with a Smile imprisoned by entangling her in a series of criminal cases regarding a single act, usurping her fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
This girl, armless but armed with a killing and defiant smile and a twinkle in her eyes, perhaps had a bigger ideology, a greater commitment to her cause, and bigger dreams for her country. These qualities eventually made her the biggest threat to national security and safety. With her outside the jail, she could have been one of the biggest threats the country had ever faced. Therefore, the state, in all righteousness, frustrated the Lahore High Court’s order. The court had declared that there was no incriminating material to connect the petitioner with any or all charges leveled against her and observed that these cases were registered against her with malafide intentions and ulterior motives, aimed solely at defeating the judicial system.
The state also disregarded the quotes of English philosopher John Stuart Mill, who said, “…a State which dwarfs its men, in order that they may be more docile instruments in its hands even for beneficial purposes – will find that with small men no great thing can really be accomplished.”
The Girl with a Smile must learn her lessons and seriously consider trading her smile for the promised freedom, thus saving the country from imminent obliteration. But sadly, she seems too stubborn and may never trade her smile, no matter what is offered.
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