Memogate probe: Yasin Malik seeks to record ‘truth’

JKLF chairman requests SC to make him a party to case.

ISLAMABAD:

In response to Mansoor Ijaz’s allegations, Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Yasin Malik requested the Supreme Court on Saturday that he should be allowed to become a party before the commission investigating the Memogate scandal.

In his application, submitted through his counsel, Zafar Ali Shah, Malik requested the court to provide him an opportunity to appear before the commission, so that “the truth and whole truth” could be recorded.

During cross-examination before the commission, Ijaz, the whistleblower of the Memogate scandal, gave a statement that Malik, at the instance of US government, had met then chief of India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

In his application, Malik directly addressed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, stating that he felt a ‘cleverly calculated mischief’ in Ijaz’s statement.

His counsel stated in the application, “Since my client is not a party to the proceedings but has been named, an opportunity needs to be provided to him to respond to the statement.”

Shah said that his client held relevant information that he wished to depose before the commission in order to assist it.

“My client also considers it appropriate to state that a previous attempt was made by Ijaz to show him in poor light,” the counsel said.

“My client cannot state all the facts in this communication, as it is neither advisable nor in public interest to do so,” Advocate Shah said in the request.

Submission to commission

On Saturday, Malik’s wife Mushal also submitted an application to the judicial commission probing Memogate, in response to Ijaz’s assertion that he arranged his meeting with Raw chief. After deliberations, the head of the commission decided to convince all the parties to delete the part of the testimony regarding Malik.

Akram Sheikh, counsel of Mansur Ijaz, also agreed on the condition that if Malik is allowed to become party, the then RAW chief may also be summoned for cross examination.

The commission gave sometime to Mushal Malik to discuss the issue with her husband and consult a lawyer on whether Malik’s grievance will be satisfied if the section in the testimony about him is deleted.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY QAISER ZULFIQAR IN ISLAMABAD

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2012.