LLB

Permanent URI for this community

https://escholar.umt.edu.pk/handle/123456789/6064

Browse

Browsing LLB by Author "Ahmad Hassan"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    A critical analysis of minority rights in pakistan
    (UMT.Lahore, 2025) Hammad Ayoub; Ahmad Hassan; Gulfam Raza; Farooq Azam
    Minority rights provide a litmus test for the health of any constitutional democracy. Pakistan‘s 1973 Constitution pledges robust safeguards-most notably in Articles 20, 25, 26, and 36-yet religious and ethnic minorities continue to face discrimination, legal jeopardy, and social exclusion. This thesis offers a comprehensive, multi-method investigation into the causes of that protection gap. A doctrinal analysis of constitutional clauses, statutes, and forty years of case law reveals how textual ambiguities, broad ―public-order‖ qualifiers, and non-justiciable directives enable restrictive legislation and timid jurisprudence. Empirical evidence, drawn from twenty-one key-informant interviews and an extensive documentary review, demonstrates how these doctrinal weaknesses translate into everyday harms: misuse of blasphemy provisions, quota evasion, forced conversions, and procedural intimidation that turns trial processes into punishment. Despite these challenges, the study identifies―islands of progress‖ judicial interventions, minority liaison policing models, and civil-society legal aid that illustrate the transformative potential of targeted reform. The thesis concludes with a four-pillar agenda encompassing legislative amendments (e.g., a Blasphemy Procedure Act), principled proportionality review by the courts, resource-backed administrative measures, and socio-cultural initiatives such as curriculum reform and media codes of conduct. Implemented in concert and monitored through a national ―traffic-light‖ dashboard, these recommendations chart a realistic path toward converting Pakistan‘s constitutional promises into lived equality for all citizens. Keywords: Pakistan Constitution; minority rights; blasphemy laws; constitutional enforcement gap; proportionality review; administrative reform; socio-legal study