The Supreme Court on Friday gave the government until Oct 10 to prepare a conclusive draft of the letter to be sent to Swiss authorities for the reopening of a graft case against President Asif Ali Zardari.
A five-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa issued the directive after a hearing in the NRO implementation case.
Earlier Friday, the bench reviewed the letter’s draft submitted by Law Minister Farooq H. Naek.
Justice Khosa said the draft was not in spirit of the court’s order, adding that, that the first and second paragraphs of the draft were in accordance with the court’s order but the third paragraph conflicted with the first two paragraphs as well as with the court’s order.
Justice Khosa further said that the last paragraph of the letter’s draft needed reviewing and that the matter was just inches away from a resolution.
After the bench expressed its reservations, Naek requested for 15 minutes’ time to address the court’s reservations.
The minister said he had made the request for more time in the greater national interest and asked the court to not reveal the contents of the letter in public.
Upon which, Justice Khosa said that hiding the letter’s contents could lead to questions of transparency.
Granting the minister’s request, Justice Khosa said the matter was nearing a resolution which was why the court would give the government more time.
He further said that it took a long time for the government to reach the current point, adding that, all the work done in the past could not simply be wasted.
The court took a recess during which Naek was summoned to the judges’ chamber.
Later, Naek requested the bench to give him time until Oct 10 to consult with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on the letter’s draft. The request was granted by the court and the case’s hearing was subsequently adjourned to Oct 10.
Earlier during the hearing, Naek had presented before the court the amended draft of the letter.
Naek had requested the judges to review the letter’s draft and inform in case they had any reservations over it.
After which, the judges had retired to their chamber to review the draft.
Prior to the start of the hearing, Naek had told reporters that he hoped that the matter would be resolved today, adding that, he always had a positive approach on the matter.
The law minister had further said that the government would implement the order of the Supreme Court.
NRO case: Court gives until Oct 10 to finalise draft of Swiss letter
