The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) will issue fresh summons, yet again, to the Supreme Court registrar, asking him to appear before a joint investigation team (JIT) probing the alleged underhand transactions between the chief justice’s son and a business tycoon.
Despite being summoned by the NAB twice, Dr Faqir Hussain refused to appear before the five-member JIT on Friday.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry’s son, Dr Arslan Iftikhar, has already expressed his distrust of the bureau’s JIT and has challenged the attorney general’s move to approach NAB for investigations into the alleged financial dealings between Dr Arsalan and real estate tycoon Malik Riaz.
Riaz has alleged that Dr Arsalan received monetary and other benefits worth millions of rupees from him to settle pending cases in courts against Bahria Town by using the influence his father possess on the judiciary.
Dr Arsalan contested the composition of the JIT, challenged the members’ impartiality and claimed they were ‘affectees’ of his father’s decisions in different cases in the past.
While hearing a case regarding objections raised by Dr Arsalan, a division bench of the apex court on Thursday had expressed displeasure over the language used by the NAB to summon the SC registrar.
The bench comprising Justice Jawad S Khawaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain had sought explanation from NAB Prosecutor General KK Aga as to why the JIT was calling the court official and in what capacity was he required in the case.
Aga had replied that the bureau wanted to question Dr Hussain on his television interview. In response, the court remarked that if it was required, NAB may summon him in a personal capacity but not as the registrar of the apex court. The bench also directed the bureau to communicate with Dr Hussain on his personal residential address.
On the basis of the court proceedings, Dr Hussain sent a letter to the JIT.
NAB, after Friday’s meeting of the JIT, announced a third summons to Dr Hussain in his private capacity strictly in accordance with the directions given by the Supreme Court in its order dated 26.07.2012.
Since Dr Hussain would be summoned in his private capacity, the summons would be sent at his personal residential address, the NAB’s media office said.
“Any correspondence by Dr Faqir Hussain as registrar or by using the official letter-head of the Supreme Court henceforth will not be entertained by the JIT to the extent of his version or contention in this case. The summons is likely to be issued for his personal appearance before JIT sometime next week,” the media office added.
NAB has also sent a request for International Mutual Legal Assistance from relevant authorities in the UK through diplomatic channels and the UK High Commission in Pakistan.
The bureau’s JIT has also sought the services of Britain’s Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) for technical assistance and to ensure transparency in the process of gathering evidence in this case.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 28th, 2012.
COMMENTS (5)
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Lala gee are you Dr. Faqir Hussain? If not kindly please wake up. SC has gone totally out control. Its high time someone got a piece of what the public sentiment about SC is now.
@Lala Gee:
Out right blatant lies are not welcome. Thorughout the Western democracies let alone the registrar but even the judges can be summoned by various branches of executive and legislature in an assortment of capacities.
For example the Lord Chief Justice of England & Wales appears regularly in front of a committee of House of Lords to debrief them about the performance of the Courts, the management of monies given from tax payers money and all administrative matters.
As Kay Jamison the renowned clinical psychologist wrote,
“One is what one is, and the dishonesty of hiding behind a degree, or a title, or any manner and collection of words, is still exactly that: dishonest.”
one would like 'the other side of story of 'drama unending'.
The Registrar of Supreme Court is a Supreme Court judge by equivalency and post heading the office of the Registrar. And nowhere in this world including USA, UK, and India a judge of Supreme Court has ever been, and cannot be, summoned by any branch of executive including police and parliamentary committees. If there is any information required from a judge of any court, let alone a judge of Supreme Court, the investigation officer has to go to him for the purpose or write a letter for providing the required information. This is the practice all over the world and of the governments respecting the authority and dignity of the courts and judges. NAB or any JIT has no legal or moral authority to summon a serving judge of Supreme Court. It is just an effort to make mockery of and to show disrespect towards the honorable judges of the apex court as has been done by several times in the past by the PPP leadership and their sycophants who think themselves as special and above all the norms and laws.