ISI on board to probe IHC attack

CJ Minallah suggests exemplary punishment for lawyers involved in vandalism

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad chief commissioner has formed a joint investigation team (JIT) on Monday to probe into the Islamabad High Court (IHC) attack and a notification was also issued in this regard.

According to the notification, the JIT comprises representatives of Inter-Services Intelligence, Intelligence Bureau, SSP (Investigation), Counter Terrorism Department SSP, Saddar SP, SDPO and Margalla police SHO.

It further stated that the investigation team will also seek help from the IHC Bar and the Islamabad District Bar, adding that the JIT will probe the matter at Margalla and Ramna police stations.

Meanwhile, IHC Chief Justice (CJ) Athar Minallah, expressing displeasure over last week's ransacking of the high court, called for lawyers involved in the attack to be given exemplary punishment.

The judge made these remarks while hearing the case pertaining to the February 8 rampage where hundreds of lawyers ransacked the high court's premises, including the IHC CJ's chambers, during a protest over demolition of illegally built chambers.

During the proceeding, IHC's Bar Association Secretary Sohail Akbar Chaudhry requested the court to form a judicial commission to investigate the case. However, Justice Minallah remarked that culprits are known to everyone, adding that the case does not need a commission.

"The bar should identify those who were involved in the attack so that no one else is harassed,” he stressed. The judge further stated that all those involved in the attack were lawyers of the bar, saying "I know half of them".

He observed that those who held the judges hostage for five hours have committed a grave crime. "It is a serious incident and those involved should be punished," he added.

Justice Minallah said the integrity of the bar is at stake because of the wrongdoing of some 100 people.

He further observed that the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) has reported that the lawyers and the bar are not cooperating in resolving the case. The judge then asked what the state would have done had the protesters belonged to a political party.

“When I was made hostage, I was ready for the worst,” Justice Minallah recalled, adding, “I saw the bar’s president and the secretary helpless during the incident.” He maintained that there will be no compromise or ifs and buts while the law will take its course.

He expressed concern over the fact that lawyers also assaulted media workers and got hold of their footage. “The attackers had planned to go on a rampage and they even deleted the videos of the incident,” he noted.

Furthermore, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) will submit a progress report pertaining to the construction of the judicial complex and lawyers’ complexes in Islamabad, a spokesperson shared on Monday.

A three-member larger bench of IHC headed by Justice Minallah presided over the case pertaining to the construction of judicial and lawyers complexes on Monday.

At the onset of the hearing, the chief justice inquired about the progress of the construction of both complexes, inquiring what had become of the land allocated for lawyers.

CDA's lawyer said that the responsibility is with the federal government while the authority has approved the plan. Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Syed Tayyab Shah appeared before the bench to represent the government, requesting more time from the court.

Minallah instructed that the development work should be finished before March 23 while the hearing of the case was adjourned indefinitely.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16^th, 2021.