The Panama leaks trial in the apex court has kept the public galvanised. PTI chief Imran Khan and his advisers expected that the court would, after examining the 689 pages of evidence collected from newspaper clippings that they presented, quickly pass judgement against the prime minister. And that then Khan would accomplish his cherished dream of seeing the premier out of power.
Hamid Khan, the PTI’s founding member and a leading lawyer, who had been contesting the case, threw his hands up and withdrew himself from the case. PTI social media warriors had made Hamid Khan an object of ridicule for failing to argue the case convincingly. He asked his party chief to look for someone else. Principled and respected, Hamid Khan followed the way another PTI founding member, Justice (r) Wajihuddin, went.
After Hamid Khan called it quits, Imran Khan had to choose his new legal expert. Newspapers reported there was a tie between Naeem Bukhari and Babar Awan. To Awan’s dismay, Bukhari won Khan’s favour and Awan advised to be the twelfth man. Awan did not attend subsequent party sessions to deliberate upon the legal battle.
Lawyers have made it big since Pervez Musharraf’s days in power. In 2007-8, Waseem Sajjad was the highest paid lawyer among the general’s legal team. Sajjad was a member of the PML-Q and leader of the house yet he charged Rs8.2 million to defend Musharraf’s acts, including a reference against deposed CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry. It was a huge sum at the time when the dollar stood round Rs60.
Musharraf’s legal team also included Ahmad Raza Kasuri, a great admirer of the general. But Musharraf had little faith in Kasuri’s legal perspicacity and thus paid him only a million. Waseem Sajjad may have forgotten Musharraf, but Kasuri remains his loyal follower and hopes his leader would soon return to power.
However, Imran Khan chose Naeem Bukhari to lead the Panama leaks case in the Supreme Court. More than professional achievements, Bukhari’s claim to fame is the contentious letter he wrote against former CJP Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. This letter triggered a storm, culminating in the movement for the restoration of the judiciary.
Besides the stack of papers submitted by Imran Khan, Sheikh Rashid submitted 600 pages worth of evidence in the court. One of the honourable judges remarked that Sheikh Rasheed could have made a better lawyer than a politician. Sheikh might have taken the comment proudly without realising some of the lordships have a sparkle of subtle humour.
But let’s give Sheikh Rashid his due. By his uninhibited oratory, he succeeds in enthralling people, especially when he mixes some facts with more fiction and braggadocio while holding forth on the podium. Frankly, there’s nothing common between Imran Khan and Sheikh Rashid but both cling to each other like, as we used to say in school, old chums. A common adversary brings strange bedfellows together. For instance, consider Allama Tahirul Qadri whose personality is at a tangent with that of Imran Khan and Sheikh Rashid but he embraces the two against the same adversary.
When the apex court resumed hearing of the case after two weeks hiatus, some of Imran Khan’s party stalwarts advised him to argue the case himself, instead of depending on legal counsel. Indeed, Khan could have presented the case with much élan but the problem is that he is too self-righteous, has zero patience for criticism, and loses his cool too often.
Nevertheless, it seems there is no business other than contesting legal battles in the courts. The electronic and print media have kept the Panama leaks issue alive by instant reporting and by analysis by political pundits on the subject. Such discussions and prolonged reporting take a heavy toll on public sensibilities.
After the Panama show, young Bilawal Bhutto intends to take to the streets with his own demands. He believes he has a right to reclaim his lost dynasty. Staging such shows is a pastime for the super rich, while 60 percent among the ruled live below the poverty line to fend for themselves.
The writer is a freelance columnist based in Lahore.
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