Memogate issue: No polygraph for Haqqani, says LHC

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday dismissed a petition seeking court orders for using a polygraph during the investigation into the memogate issue.

The petition also wanted Husain Haqqani to declare all his national and foreign assets.

During an earlier hearing, Justice Umar Ata Bandial of the LHC directed petitioner’s counsel Barrister Javed Iqbal Jafree to convince the court that a lie detector was a reliable method of discerning between truth and falsehood.

As the proceeding started on Monday, the petitioner’s counsel failed to convince the court on using the polygraph.

Additionally he could not provide proofs regarding his allegations that Haqqani wasted public money in unsuccessful defence of Dr Aafia Siddiqui in US courts.

Jafree, however argued that many developed countries had been using the polygraph in high profile cases and insisted that the machine gave best results.

After recording Jafree’s arguments, Justice Bandial reserved the decision.

Iftikhar Rajpoot had filed this petition through Barrister Jafree. Interior Minister Rehman Malik, opposition leader in National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Attorney General of Pakistan Maulvi Anwarul Haq and Cabinet Secretary Nargis Sethi were named as respondents in it.

Rajpoot had accused Haqqani of sending a “derogatory letter” to the former US military chief Mike Mullen through a US-based Pakistani businessman Mansoor Ijaz against the Pakistan army and Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).

By doing this, Rajpoot accused that Haqqani has tarnished the image of both Pakistan and its armed forces.

The petitioner had also pleaded that Haqqani was appointed ambassador to Sri Lanka against merit during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure as prime minister. But Haqqani then changed his loyalties and became a member of PPP.