ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge who made headlines by going ballistic on top spy agency and alleged manipulation of judicial proceedings, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui wrote to Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Sunday, requesting him to constitute a judicial commission to probe the claims.
In a letter written to the CJP, Justice Siddiqui said that a commission be formed with a retired or serving judge as its head. He added that the judge should not be someone who took oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order, instated by former military dictator Pervez Musharraf in 2007.
The IHC judge stated in his letter that he stated facts about the prevailing situation without any fear. He further asked what would be the fate of serving army officers who are involved in manipulating the judicial process if the claims are proven.
He demanded that a commission be formed to “probe the authenticity and truthfulness of the presented facts” and that the proceedings be open so that lawyers, media and civil society can attend and report on the same. The IHC judge acknowledged that the CJP expressed annoyance over his remarks against the armed forces.
Earlier in the day, the CJP had himself taken notice of the IHC judge’s speech. The top court had subsequently summoned the record of the speech from PEMRA.
During a hearing of the case at Supreme Court’s Karachi Registry on Sunday, CJP Nisar expressed annoyance over Justice Siddiqui’s remarks and said that “judiciary is working independently and free from any pressure”.
A day after the IHC judge lashed out at the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) for its ostensible attempts to manipulate the judicial, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) stated: “An honourable judge of Islamabad High Court of Pakistan has levelled serious allegations against state institutions, including honourable judiciary and premier state intelligence agency.”
“In order to safeguard the sanctity and credibility of the state institutions, Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan has been requested to initiate the appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations,” the military’s media wing said in a tweet.
