NICL scam: Fired probe chief put back in saddle
As the government-judiciary tussle seemed to draw to a close, the Supreme Court has again reinstated Zafar Ahmed Qureshi as the lead investigator in the National Insurance Company Limited land scam.
(Read: Unnecessary confrontation)
The outspoken Qureshi, who has been restored to his post as additional director-general of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), was suspended on July 4 by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, just days after the SC ordered his reinstatement.
In a detailed 37-page judgment, the court has ordered that Qureshi resume investigation from where he had left off and complete the probe at the earliest. The team, which had been assisting him in the investigation, will join him unless he wants otherwise.
The court also ordered that no action shall be taken against Qureshi without the SC’s prior approval. The FIA director-general has also been issued a stern warning by the court against any interference in the probe being conducted by Qureshi. On Monday, senior judge Justice Shakirullah Jan read out the verdict in the absence of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry who is in Lahore for another hearing.
Quashing Qureshi’s suspension notification of 4.7.2011 and all other relevant orders, the court tasked Justice Ghulam Rabbani to find out the reasons that led to Qureshi’s suspension despite the court’s 1.7.2011 order to reinstate him. The court also declared that Qureshi is deemed to have been on duty as an official of the FIA following the court’s July 1 order.
The court said that Attorney-General Maulvi Anwarul Haq had failed to submit the prime minister’s stand on the issue and ordered Haq to submit a written statement regarding the positions of the prime minister and the interior minister.
The court also ordered the formation of a commission, headed by Justice Ghulam Rabbani, which will ascertain who is responsible for Qureshi’s suspension and an “anti-judiciary campaign” in the electronic media and present its report to the SC. The court’s deputy registrar Sajid Mehmood will be the commission’s secretary and will be assisted by the interior and information secretaries.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 9th, 2011.
COMMENTS (19)
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@syed Imran: Mirza is one of the most impartial and sanest analysts we have. We have to get rid of the mentality of quiting every sane voice which shows us the reality. Keep up the good work, Mirza!
@Mirza,
I pity on your innocence...don't take the name of Mukhtara Mai, who is playing a political game now. as one of the member commented, what about the cases of other women, what about the cases of uncountable missing persons..go and get a life, there is too much more to think of and thousand other issues for the court to hear..but no more Mukhtara Mai please...
@Mirza, you have highlighted the shortfalls of SC which are so gross that it deserves the same dose given to it once by Perviz Musharaff. It deserves an appropriate reprimand for having the audacity to go after officials and poiticians who have happened to make a little bit of money. How dare they encourage and protect these sacred cows by encoraging low level funtioneries to investigate the alleged culprits with an aim to bring them to book. I fully share your concern and throughly endorse what you have said. :
CJ wants to be in headlines so making all decisions with this mentality.
@Mirza: i appreciate your comments,you given logical and valid comments.
Some analysts were predicting the tension is over. But it is not. There will come a tipping point sooner or later. We must support the Supreme Court when that time comes.
Pakistan will only be a nation if it follows the laws. Finally the Courts are independent
"Sunjian ho jaan galiyan te wich Mirza yaar phirey" Long Live CJ...keep it up till you ruin every other institution
@Deemer: I agree with you that there are many many women who are suffering and do not get justice.However, the SC court is busy in trying the cases itself, rather than act as an appeals court. All these and corruption cases can and should be tried in hundreds of lower courts doing nothing. We have several times more judges than US SC which has no more than 9. All these judges can take up as many cases as they like or think is fair. It seems that is a liking for only political and executive type of cases in the SC. Apart from who is right or who is wrong, the fact is SC is not a trial court and must not be relegated as such. Here is an example what a few judges of SC can do for millions of poor kids? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f227UYDJ7EU&feature=player_embedded Thanks and regards, Mirza
@syed Imran: This is exactly what I am trying to do? However, it appears that this NRO SC does not either read the English papers or does not give a damn about the fairness and justice. They are too busy in all political cases and executive appointments. One can only wish that Pakistani SC can follow this shining example of the SC of our neighbor? What a great difference one judgement of SC has made in young people's lives. Please concentrate on the more important issues and leave these for lower courts and the High Courts. Regards, Mirza
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f227UYDJ7EU&feature=player_embedded
I presume that Police Foundation Scam Case will also be handed over to Mr. Zafar Qureshi then :)
Let’s do our bit as Pakistani and come on street against this government. Common people can be incredibly powerful if they join hands. We need to support the few honest people left in this country.
@syed Imran: We will go to the court in 2013, when the judiciary will be restored for poor and common people of Pakistan.
The SCP patience (advertent or inadvertent or for undesired blind ‘akiedat for Benzir)) allowed MR Zardari-Galani government to humiliate ridicule, disrespect and play politics with its scores of judgments encouraging the government administrative institutions to take liberty of law especially politicians, the criminala,target killers of thousands civilians,bathakhorsof trillion of rupees of MQM,ANP,PPPZ.By dilly dallying in concert with MQM,ANP,ML-Choudries,PPP-Z government is buying time to complete its five years and ruin economy of country,16.5 crore poor, enslave it to drones,IMF,UK,USA to perpetuate it power and amass trillion of ill gotten wealth.I would request SCP to loose no time to punish Zardari-Galani,PPPZ,Babar Awan,Rhman Malik ,MQM,ANP,ML-Choudries in example without any further let up or concession. SCP must also punish the TV anchors, news casters who have become bigger than country of ARY-DR Danish,Badami,,Dunya-Luqman,Geo .Shahazads,Newsoneone-Faisals Querashy,Express,cnbc-Brelvi,Jaffery,Samma,Asma Shirazi,Jasmeen etc whose role has been most injurious to the interests of Pakistan and only conducted themselves most of them as mouthpieces of M,QM,PPPZ or think themselves as Socrates and Vatican Pope and act most obnoxiously with their callers as Faisal Querashy who have made their channel as family show and must be finished for getting stagnated by its owners. They must be punished in example for ever depriving their dreams to perpetuate their power and ill gotten wealth unto their dynasties. Let them have heart. The whole nation is behind them and will destroy those who will stand against their decsions.The Mir Jaffers,Mir Sadiks,those who call India to take back six crore Muhujirs etc must be decimated once for all before it is too late.Let SCP clean Pakistan from the most corrupt government on earth and retrieve the trillions of dollars stashed by them abroad. They will fing=d 16.5 crore people of Pakistan standing behind them like solid rock. Dubai
@ Mirza--- If you are so interested please go to the court once and plead for hearing of these cases. Your negative mentality is always on display in these columns
All order of the Supreme Count need to be respected and implemented.
A J Khan
We should appreciate what happened on backgound of this matter. The investigation officer was changed because of political reasons. The court gave sufficient time for the executive to act and what happened today, it was asked for by the present government which is doing nothing except "politics". We must apprecaite the patience and restraint excercised by the Supreme Court.
Supreme court can get the response of Prime Minister on every order that he passes in a day if he is employed in Supreme Court as Assistant Registrar. That way he will always be available in Supreme Court Building and can be called by the registrar to submit his reply timely. This will raise the stature of sovereign Judiciary and also ensure that the orders of the court are complied timely and to the satisfaction of the new aspirant to the seat of the Prime Minister.
When would the SC hear the review petition of Mukhtar Mai, with the same zeal as this political case? There are cases languishing in the courts for decades including Air Martial A. Khan to name just a couple. Not a single hearing has taken place as yet and would never happen. Perhaps the court is waiting for the Air Martial to pass away and then there would not be any need for hearing his case.