Federal political system resolve the problem of premature dissolutions of government in

Table of Statute and Legal Instruments 
Constitution of 1962 (of Pakistan) 
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973 
Government of India Act 1912 
Government of India Act 1919 
Government of India Act 1935 
Indian Council Act 1892 
Indian Council Act 1909 
Regulatory Act 1773 
United States Constitution 
Table of Cases 
Begum Nusrat Bhutto vs Chief of Army staff [1977] PLD [1977] SC 657. 
Dosso Vs Federation of Pakistan [1958] PLD [1958] SC Pak 533. 
Federation of Pakistan and Others vs Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan [1955] PLD 1955, 
FC 240. 
Marbury v Madison 5 US 137 (1803). 
McCulloch v. Maryland, 17 U.S. 4 Wheat. 316 (1819) 316. 
Miss Asma Jilani Vs. The Government of the Punjab and Another [1972] PLD [1972] 
SC 139. 
Sindh High Court Bar Association v Federation of Pakistan PLD (2009) SC 879. 
Syed Zafar Ali Shah and others vs Gen Musharraf, Chief Executive of Pakistan 
[2000] PLD [2000] SC 869. 
Texas v White 74 US 700 (1869). 

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3 
1. 
Introduction 
The central problem that this research project is designed to address is that 
Pakistan has gone through seven episodes of premature dissolutions of government 
since its inception in 1947 which, amongst other issues,
1
have caused an 
environment of great political instability in the country. The term 'premature 
dissolution' in this thesis refers to dissolving the legislature and executive branches 
of federal and provincial governments - whether constitutionally or otherwise - 
before the expiry of their normal term.
2
Key factors identified in the literature 
discussed in Chapter 3 which appear to contribute to premature dissolution, are:
1) disparity of representation, which is enshrined in the design of the constitutions; 
2) self-interest, in creating legislation which allows or protects the acts of premature 
dissolution and the role of the judiciary in terms of interpretation and
3) use of the doctrine of state necessity.
These factors appear to be interconnected since situations in which state necessity 
is relied on are caused or invoked by the military, politicians and/or the judiciary 
in response to issues such as disparity of representation, self-interest and uneven 
distribution of power flow between legislature, judiciary and executive (that is, a 
failure in the system of checks and balances). 
In contrast, the USA, also a post-colonial, democratic federal state, has not 
experienced a similar history of premature dissolution or constitutional crisis. It 
has therefore, for reasons set out in Chapter 2, been selected as a suitable 
comparator. It is, however, important for that comparison that the role of 
Enlightenment philosophy in the development of the US constitution is understood, 
and this is discussed in Chapter 5. 
The aim of this thesis is, then, to examine as its primary hypothesis the idea that 
adoption of certain aspects of the US political system could resolve the problem of 
premature dissolutions of government in Pakistan: A Democratic Federal Political 
1
For example, nepotism in the form of political party ownership by certain families, corruption with 
limited accountability, military intervention in political affairs. 
2
The legislature can be dissolved constitutionally by invoking Article 58 (2) (B) of the Constitution or 
by unconstitutional means such as military takeovers. 

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4 
System in the sense defined in this thesis, can resolve the problem of premature 
dissolutions of government in Pakistan. In order to formulate possible constitutional 
solutions for Pakistan’s problem, the researcher’s starting supposition involves a 
hypothesis that he has called constitutional suitability i.e., that a country should 
have an appropriate political system with respect to its state structure.
3
For the 
purpose of this research an appropriate political system with respect to a federal 
state will be defined as a Democratic Federal Political System, with capitalisation to 
distinguish it from any other form of federalism. In this sense, it is proposed that a 
Democratic Federal Political System is one that encompasses the essential features 
of US democracy and federalism, such as equal representation, separation of 
powers, and systems of checks and balances. In this project, these features of the 
US system are referred as key factors, which are explored in more detail in Chapter 
3 in the light of the philosophical literature. 
In order to test the starting hypothesis, it is important to address its associated 
following sub-questions:
1. Are premature dissolutions of government an on-going and important issue in 
Pakistan?
2. Are the present and past political systems Democratic Federal ones? 
2.1. Does the political system address issues of equal representation? 
2.2. Does the political system provide for separation of powers and checks and 
balances? 
2.3. Are there elements of self-interest exercised by influential individuals that can 
override the controls in the system? 
3. Is there any connection between premature dissolutions of government and one