Zardari had knowledge of Abbottabad operation: petitioner

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has issued notice to the federal government in a writ petition seeking an order for the Commission of Inquiry into the Abbottabad incident to probe the claim that former President Asif Ali Zardari knew about the US military operation against al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden beforehand.

A division bench comprising Justice Ikramullah Khan and Justice Mussarat Hilali issued the notice to federal government through secretary establishment division in a writ petition filed by freelance journalist Shahid Orakzai. During the hearing, the petitioner stated that the court had issued notice to the respondents, but they did not submit reply. Justice Ikramullah Khan told the petitioner that notice had not been served in previous hearing of the case and the court was giving notice to the federal government.

The petitioner requested the bench to direct the Abbottabad Commission to submit its report within 30 days after examining the evidence of the alleged communication between former President Asif Zardari and former Pakistan ambassador to the US Hussain Haqqani ahead of the US raid. He prayed the court to seek an affidavit from the former president denying the secret communication by the ambassador of Pakistan to the US that bypassed the Foreign Office as well as the Prime Minister’s Secretariat. The petitioner alleged that the former president covertly connected with the American CIA in context of its operation against Osama bin Laden. He said this would be proved before the Commission of Inquiry into the Abbottabad Incident. Shahid Orakzai claimed that in the last week of April 2011, Asif Ali Zardari as the country’s president betrayed the ‘security of Pakistan’ by concealing secret information received from Washington about the upcoming US military operation against Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad The respondents in the petition are Asif Ali Zardari, Commission of Inquiry into Abbottabad Incident chairman retired Justice Javed Iqbal and the federal secretary interior. The petitioner claimed that the commission’s chairman was duly informed of the matter in writing. He recalled that the commission subsequently summoned the petitioner.

He said he had assured the commission that he held irrefutable documentary evidence that the former president knew about the impending attack in the last week of April, 2011. He added that the proof in his possession could be examined.