Commission fixed responsibility, says Justice Iqbal

ISLAMABAD: In his reaction to the leak of the highly-classified report, Abbottabad Commission head Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal said on Tuesday that they have clearly identified those responsible for one of the most embarrassing episodes in the country’s history.

The four-member commission not only pointed out the institutions responsible for culpable negligence and incompetency, but also reviewed their role in the country’s overall defence, he told a private television channel.

“I myself submitted the report to Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf on January 2. The commission did not give a clean chit to anyone. It [report] would have been published if responsibility was not determined,” he added.

Playing safe, Justice Iqbal neither confirmed the authenticity of the leaked report nor denied its contents, but termed speculation in national and international media, baseless and misleading.

The government had set up the commission after the US special forces killed al Qaeda kingpin Osama bin Laden in a secret raid in his Abbottabad compound on May 2, 2011.



Explaining the in-depth workings of the commission, Justice Iqbal said they reviewed the roles of all institutions, carefully determining responsibility of this gargantuan security lapse.

He clarified that all institutions gave their inputs and no one had refused to appear before the commission. “Members of the commission were independent in giving their opinion. As president of the commission, I did not have any veto power,” he added. “If one member [of the commission] made of one institution responsible, the others were free to give their independent opinion.”

A senior official engaged with the commission told The Express Tribune that the report actually consists of two volumes. The first volume consists of 336 pages, while the second remains secret and contains recommendations.

“Some 400 pages contain annexures and recommendations,” he added. “The second volume also carries some 100 recommendations.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 10^th, 2013.