Ex-spymaster rejects IHC judge’s claims

Faiz Hameed describes allegations leveled by Shaukat Aziz Siddqui as 'absolutely false, concocted’

ISLAMABAD:

 

Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) former director general Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed has denied the allegations levelled by Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) sacked judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui with regard to manipulation of judicial proceedings in the Panama Papers case.

"The Respondent No 3 (Hameed) had never approached the petitioner at his residence on June 29, 2018 or on July 19, 2018, for apologizing to [him for] the alleged conduct of Respondent No 4 (ISI’s former official Brig Irfan Ramay),” said a reply submitted in the apex court.

“[The Respondent No 3 also never approached the judge] for seeking guidance to protect the prestige of the ISI, by modifying any order passed by the Petitioner (Siddiqui),” it added.

A five-member larger bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice (CJ) Qazi Faez Isa, will take up the sacked judge’s petition on Tuesday (today) at 11:30 am. The bench will also include Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan.

On October 11, 2018, President Dr Arif Alvi removed Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui based on the recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) under Article 209(6) read with Article 48(1) of the Constitution.

The SJC unanimously opined that, during a speech at a Rawalpindi District Bar Association event on July 21, 2018, Siddiqui had displayed conduct “unbecoming of a high court judge”. In his speech, the former judge had accused secret agencies of manipulating benches.

Siddiqui later challenged the SJC decision in the apex court, but his petition was not listed for hearing during the tenure of three former chief justices.

However, the Supreme Court, under Justice Isa, listed the case for hearing and issued notice to the former chief of the ISI, Faiz Hameed, on December 15. The court also directed the petitioner to file an amended petition within seven days.

Ahead of the hearing, Faiz Hameed and Irfan Ramay filed their replies through Khawaja Haris. IHC former chief justice Anwar Kasi also submitted his reply through Waseem Sajjad, rejecting the allegation that judicial proceedings were manipulated by agencies during his tenure.

In his reply, the former ISI chief said the allegations leveled by the former IHC judge are “absolutely false, concocted and based on an afterthought.”

He said he never inquired from Siddiqui about the procedure in the IHC for hearing appeals against orders of accountability courts, particularly their orders convicting former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

Hameed stated that he never asked the petitioner as to whether such an appeal would be listed for hearing in a bench comprising the sacked judge.

He rejected Siddiqui’s allegation that in response to his reply that as per oath administered to every judge, he would be deciding the case purely on merits, Hameed uttered the words: is tarah tau hamari dou saal ki mehnat zaya ho jaye ge [This way our efforts for two years will go wasted]. Hameed claimed that the former IHC judge's allegations were false, frivolous, concocted and motivated.

The reply stated that benches for hearing appeals were to be constituted by the IHC chief justice and not by the petitioner, who was then the senior puisne judge.

“As such, if (Hameed) had any desire [which he could not dare to entertain] to have a bench of his choice to be constituted, he would have approached the [IHC] chief justice to do so, rather than to involve the petitioner in this matter.”

It said the sacked judge also claimed that subsequently, the IHC chief justice agreed to constitute a bench as per the ISI chief’s demands.

“[However], it is noteworthy that the bench constituted by the Hon’ble [IHC] chief justice for hearing appeals relating to Nawaz Sharif and his family, not only comprised of the two of the finest judges [but] the bench so constituted [also]proceeded to suspend the sentence of Nawaz Sharif, as well as his daughter and son-in-law, who had been convicted by the Accountability Court-1 Islamabad."

The former spymaster argued that one of the members of the bench—Justice Athar Minallah—later became the IHC chief justice and is presently holding office as the judge of the Supreme Court.

He said the then chief justice of the IHC has also comprehensively refuted the allegations made by Siddiqui. 

"The Respondent No 3 (Hameed), therefore, in response to allegations made against him comprehensively denies the same as demonstrably false, frivolous, concocted.”