PTI rejects formation of inquiry commission on IHC judges’ letter

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Core Committee Thursday rejected outright the formation of an inquiry commission by the government to probe the contents of a letter, written by six judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) about the alleged meddling of intelligence agencies into judicial affairs.

The PTI core committee held its emergency meeting and rebuffed the investigation of IHC letter through an inquiry commission, reiterating its demand to present the issue before a larger bench of the Supreme Court and process it in the open court.

During the meeting, the forum expressed concern over the meeting of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the most sensitive issue related to the country’s judiciary and legal interests. It said the judges’ letter was an indictment against the federal government agencies. The inquiry of the ‘startling letter’ through a retired judge was a mockery of an independent, impartial and transparent investigation, it said.

The PTI core committee asserted that in their letter, the IHC judges exposed the fundamental challenges to the very existence of the judiciary before the CJP and SJC. It said the government was the biggest beneficiary of the ongoing lawlessness and unconstitutional interference. They said that an unelected prime minister, who seized power by stealing public mandate, was neither capable of conducting a fair investigation nor any such inquiry would have any credibility. It demanded that the CJP should provide justice to his fellow judges instead of leaving the issue to the mercy of the administration. It called for convening a judicial conference where judges of all levels should be allowed to present the facts before the nation.

Separately, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan announced that his party would hold a rally in Peshawar on Sunday for the release of party founding chairman Imran Khan and the independence of judiciary.

The PTI chairman said, “We will soon write a letter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan on behalf of the founder PTI, to explain how he was treated.” Talking to reporters along with other PTI leaders in Rawalpindi where he met Imran, Gohar said the PTI founder asked how it was possible to install cameras in the judges’ houses.

Latif Khosa told the media a convicted criminal was called from London and given a red-carpet protocol while all cases of Nawaz Sharif and his family were closed. He said all bars of Pakistan had written letters regarding pressure on judges. He added not just six IHC judges, the same situation prevailed in all the provinces. “The drama from May 9 to February 9 was part of the London Plan,” he claimed. Khosa said the Rawalpindi commissioner had spoken the truth and that those defeated in elections were made chief minister and prime minister.