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Friday, November 25, 2011
Benazir Bhutto was never interested in NRO: CJP* Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry says BB always preferred Pakistan’s interest but now beneficiaries of NRO wanted to defend it
By Hasnaat Malik
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Thursday observed that Pakistan People’s Party former chairperson Benazir Bhutto had never been interested in the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), adding that if she had benefited from the NRO then why would she support the lawyers’ movement.
The chief justice told the former law minister and federation’s counsel, Babar Awan, that he should be proud of his leader, as Benazir, in her book ‘Reconciliation, Islam, Democracy and West’ stated it was Pervez Musharraf who did it.
“She always preferred Pakistan’s interest, but now the beneficiaries of the NRO wanted to defend it,” said the chief justice.
The chief justice also remarked that former attorney general Malik Qayyum had pursued the cases of Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari and did his best to convict them when he was a judge of the Lahore High Court, but the Supreme Court had set aside that judgement.
“He humiliated Ms Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari,” the chief justice said.
The court allowed Awan to file additional documents regarding the review petition, but said it would look at only those documents that were related to the federation.
Earlier the court had refused to receive the documents, and did not allow the counsel to read the ground of his application. When Awan insisted to read out the grounds the court asked him only to read pray of his petition.
The court said that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Interior Minister Rehman Malik, instead of benefiting from the NRO, opted for facing the cases, while the interior minister even appeared before courts.
The chief justice said though the NRO was laid before parliament, it was later withdrawn.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk