ISLAMABAD: Centre’s newly formed inquiry commission, tasked with probing the 2017 Faizabad sit-in, is empowered to summon the former premier, ex-army chief and then CJP for investigation, said Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa on Wednesday.
“The commission can call anyone for investigation…no one is exempt,” he said.
CJP Isa made these remarks as a three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) took up a set of re-view petitions challenging the top court’s 2019 judgment on the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) sit-in in Faizabad, which crippled life in the federal capital and in Rawalpindi for 20 days in 2017. Authored by CJP Isa, then a judge of the SC, the scathing judgment had directed the country’s intelli-gence agencies, including the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Intelligence Bureau (IB), Military Intelli-gence (MI), and the army’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), to not exceed their constitutional mandate.
The verdict had directed the defence ministry and tri-services chiefs to hold accountable the officers under their command who were found to have violated their oath. Besides, it had instructed the Cen-tre to monitor those advocating extremism, hate and terrorism and prosecute them in accordance with the law.
At today’s hearing, the bench, led by CJP Isa and comprising Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Aminduddin Khan, was informed by Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan that the interim federal government has formed a three-member inquiry commission tasked with identify-ing persons responsible for the Faizabad sit-in.
The inquiry commission will be led by former IGP Syed Akhtar Hussain Shah and will propose legal ac-tion against those it finds responsible for the sit-in that crippled routine life in Islamabad in 2017. The court was apprised that the inquiry commission will submit its findings to the federal government within two months.
The bench had earlier rejected a fact-finding committee formed by the interim government for this purpose after all eight petitioners sought to withdraw their review pleas.
Among the petitioners were various political parties and organisations such as the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra), Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rashid and Ejazul Haq, Intelligence Bureau (IB) and defence ministry (ISI).
After the top court fixed the petitions for hearing, almost four years after they were filed, the peti-tioners all submitted applications to withdraw their pleas.
Today’s hearing
As the proceedings began today, Rashid appeared before the court and repeated his request to with-draw his appeal.
CJP Isa inquired as to why the AML chief had initially submitted the petition and why did he wish to withdraw it now. This case was stuck in limbo for four years, observed the CJP.
There were some “misunderstandings”, replied Rashid.
At this, CJP Isa remarked that petitions could not be filed on “orders coming from above”.
“Everyone knows the truth but no one is courageous enough to say it out loud,” said CJP Isa at one point
Rashid maintained that it was difficult to speak the truth these days. However, he clarified that no one had forced him to file the review petition.
Irked, the CJP said that filing petitions before the SC was “not a joke that you will file petitions when-ever you want to and withdraw them whenever you wish to”.
The question also arises why the appeals were not fixed for hearing in such a long time, he added.
“Was the Supreme Court being controlled by forces outside the court at that time?” asked CJP Isa. “First and foremost, we are to be held accountable.”
As the hearing proceeded, AGP Awan took the rostrum and apprised the court about the new fact-finding committee.
He submitted before the bench the interim federal government’s notification regarding the same.
CJP Isa observed that ministers and MNAs who were in office when the sit-in took place were respon-sible. “If you called for arson and chaos, stand by it. Say you supported it,” he said.
This prompted Rashid to start walking up to the rostrum but CJP Isa interjected and told him that the court was speaking to his lawyer not him.
Justice Minallah noted at this point that Rashid was a respectable parliamentarian and added that the court did not pass any remarks on him.
Commenting on the notification, the CJP noted concerns regarding the inclusion of individuals current-ly in office as members of the commission. Their ongoing service could be impacted, he observed.
Meanwhile, Justice Minallah remarked that every institution should perform its own duties. “Don’t make us do what was done at one time by using powers under Article 184 [of the Constitution],” he said.
However, CJP Isa remarked that the court could not doubt the commission preemptively.
Later, dictating the written order, CJP Isa said that the apex court has been apprised by AGP Awan that an addition would be made in the Terms of Reference (TORs) of the fact-finding inquiry commission to determine if review petitions against the Faizabad judgment were a coincidence or filed on instruc-tions.
The commission would be empowered to call anyone for investigation and no one would be exempt-ed from the probe, said CJP Isa.
It is also empowered to call the persons whose names have been taken by Absar Alam, the former premier, then army chief and former CJP, he added.
“We will now hear this case after two months,” he said as the court adjourned the hearing.
Case history
At the last hearing, three-member bench, led by CJP Qazi Faez Isa, put the caretaker federal govern-ment in a precarious position after it dismissed the fact-finding committee to ensure enforcement of the directives from the Faizabad dharna judgment delivered four years ago.
The turn of events had ignited a debate, raising the question of whether the present establishment will welcome the top court’s hand of justice and unearth the truth.
The general impression suggests that won’t be the case as the powerful circles will prevent setting a precedent of holding individuals accountable, even if the accused wears a retired general’s stripes.
At the centre of the last hearing held on Nov 1 was retired General Faiz Hameed, also cited in former Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) chief Absar Alam’s affidavit for having med-dled with the organisation’s operations.
Notably, throughout the session, CJP Isa repeatedly grilled the current PEMRA Chairman Saleem Baig about who had ordered him to file a review petition against the Faizabad protest judgment.
He expressed an expectation in the judicial order for an investigation into the coincidence of review petitions filed by the government and other autonomous bodies in the same case.
It is pertinent to note that the case has a distinctive history of CJP Isa having been subjected to a ‘tough time’ from the then security establishment post-judgment.
Standing solitary, Isa fought back gracefully, even as his fellow jurists initially showed reluctance to rally behind him in difficult times.
However, the majority of judges finally stood with him and accepted the review petitions against ex-CJP Umar Ata Bandial’s judgment to refer his family’s property matter to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). –Agencies
