Chaudhry Nisar challenges Deedar's appointment in SC

Petition by opposition leader states the opposition was not consulted over the NAB chairman's appointment.

ISLAMABAD: Top opposition leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Saturday filed a petition in the Supreme Court against Syed Deedar Hussain Shah’s appointment as NAB chairman and asked the court  to restrain him from performing his duties.

“I was not taken on board, over the appointment of National Accountability Bureau chairman Syed Deedar Shah,” Chaudhry Nisar wrote in his petition. On Sept 22, a few days prior to the deadline set by the apex court for the NAB chief’s appointment, he said, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani had phoned him and  informed him about his nominee, Mukhtar Ahmad Junejo. Chaudhry Nisar rejected the choice and shared some “serious reservations” about the premier’s nominee in writing.

Thereafter, he suggested to the prime minister that the two sit down together and finalise the name by mutual consensus and send it to the president for a final decision. But the premier phoned him the next day (September 23) and announced another nominee Syed Deedar Hussain Shah, while ignoring his suggestions.

Chaudhry Nisar pointed out that he voiced his reservations on Shah and wrote a letter to the prime minister urging him to sit together for consensus but neither President Asif Ali Zardari nor Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani responded back to his letter. They also did not think it appropriate to share their thoughts about Shah, he said.

Neither the president nor the prime minister communicated any reason for not accepting his reservations, according to the opposition leader. It was also unclear whether the prime minister proposed the name of Shah to the president on his own or not, Nisar wrote in his petition. Then on September 24 the prime minister again telephoned him for his views on Section 6(b) of the NAB Ordinance dealing with the appointment of the NAB chairman upon which he (Nisar) immediately wrote a letter to the prime minister saying, “My view is that the gentleman is not suitable for the post as he has actively participated in party politics and has twice served as a member of the provincial assembly of Sindh from 30.11.1988 to 06.08.1990 and from 04.11.1990 to 19.07.1993 (as per bio-data posted on the website of the High Court of Sindh), thereby raising questions as to his impartiality.

“I would like to reiterate the suggestion contained in my letter of September 23, 2010 for drawing up a list of possible candidates for the post, followed by detailed discussion through a participatory consultative process” (Copy of Letter of Leader of Opposition dated 24 September 2010 is attached herewith as Annex-1).”

“I was surprised to see the notification Syed Deedar Hussain Shah issued by the law ministry on October 8,” said Nisar in the petition, adding that the prime minister has also publicly stated that he never advised the president to appoint Shah as NAB chief.

He has asked the Supreme Court, whether in the light of the dictum laid down by the august court in Khan Asfandyar Wali’s case (PLD 2001 SC 607) and re-affirmed in Dr Mubashar Hassan’s case (PLD 2010 SC 265), the appointment of the NAB chairman without consultation of the chief justice of Pakistan is not illegal, without lawful authority and void ab initio (void from the start)?

He pleaded with the court to stop Shah from performing his functions as NAB chief till the court decides his petition. The appointment has also been challenged in the Sindh High Court and the Lahore High Court.

Publishd in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2010.