Justice Shafiur Rehman Report: Kasuri murder probe to go public

The report has remained classified for 30 years.

ISLAMABAD:

The government has decided to release Justice (retd) Shafiur Rehman’s investigation report on Ahmed Kasuri’s murder, classified for over 30 years, Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq informed the Supreme Court during the hearing of the presidential reference on ZA Bhutto’s murder trial.

Justice (retd) Shafiur Rehman found no evidence implicating Bhutto during his investigation. The case was then closed because it was untraceable. It was reopened after the 1977 coup by General Ziaul Haq. Dr Babar Awan, counsel for federation, resumed his arguments before the 11-member bench. He contended that under the law, a private complaint is entertained before the trial. But the court decided to entertain the application challenging the trial’s fairness Bhutto had filed after the trial.

“The nation and the court do not accept the verdict in Bhutto’s case nor do law students quote this case in their arguments,” the chief justice remarked. He directed the counsel to argue on the point of law for revisiting the case. “The president did not ask the court to annul any verdict in the initial reference,” the counsel said. “He deliberately asked the court to ‘revisit’ the case in the final reference. The authors of the constitution empowered the president under article 186 to refer a case to the apex court for its advice at any time.” A review is time-barred even though it is a constitutional and not a procedural remedy pursuant to Article 188.

Justice Nasirul Mulk asked the counsel if the fact that Bhutto was apparently denied a fair trial may be used to overturn the death by hanging verdict. Awan quoted the precedent set in the case of Augusto Pinochet, the former Chilean dictator extradited from the United Kingdom. Pinochet had alleged that one of the members of the bench was biased against him during the trial. The justice reversed his final judgment and stepped down from the bench. In Bhutto’s case documentary evidence proves the judges’ bias against him during the trial, Awan argued. He quoted Hamid Khan as saying that the justifications given by the Supreme Court were not credible.

What is meant by ‘revisiting’ in terms of this reference? The court asked. “The provision for a ‘revisit’ is not included in the constitution, therefore its scope is wider than a review,” Awan maintained. It is similar to the Supreme Court’s suo motu powers. The Supreme Court avidly exercises suo motu powers even though the term is not mentioned in the constitution.

What is the effect of the bias? The court asked the counsel who contended that it destroys the whole case. In Benazir Bhutto’s case, the discovery of transcripts of a telephonic conversation between Supreme Court Justice Rashid and Lahore High Court Justice Malik Qayyum led to their ouster from the judiciary.

The court directed Awan to conclude his arguments on Wednesday. The bench has decided to adjourn the reference for three weeks from Thursday.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 11^th, 2011.