News
Friday, November 09, 2012
Asghar Khan case : President can’t do politics: SC* Court issues notices to publishers, printers, reporters, IB DG and AG on reports that an amount of Rs 270m was doled out of IB account to topple Punjab govt in 2008-09
By Hasnaat Malik
ISLAMABAD: Issuing the 141-page detailed judgement in the 16-year-old Asghar Khan case, the Supreme Court declared the president as head of state must not engage in politics and that a political cell in the Presidency is illegal.
SC Registrar Dr Faqir Hussain briefed the media on the detailed verdict, which ruled 1990 elections had been rigged and that the then president Ghulam Ishaq Khan, armcy chief Aslam Beg and ISI DG Asad Durrani violated the constitution. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry authored the judgement whose main focus was the role of presidency and armed forces.
The court further stated the president of Pakistan after entering office obtains a status that falls under the definition of a person who is in “Service of Pakistan”. The judgement says the attorney general lost sight of an important aspect of the case – the president after entering office obtains the status, which falls under the definition of a person who is in “service of Pakistan”.
According to Article 260 of the constitution, “Service of Pakistan means any service, post or office in connection with the affairs of the Federation or of a Province, and includes an All-Pakistan Service, service in the Armed Forces and any other service declared to be a service of Pakistan by or under Act of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) or of a Provincial Assembly, but does not include service as Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Prime Minister, Federal Minister, Minister of State, Chief Minister, Provincial Minister, Attorney-General, Advocate-General, Parliamentary Secretary or Chairman or member of a Law Commission, Chairman or member of the Council of Islamic Ideology, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Adviser to the Prime Minister, Special Assistant to a Chief Minister, Adviser to a Chief Minister or member of a House or a Provincial Assembly.”
The court also issued notices to publishers, printers and reporters, the Intelligence Bureau director general and attorney general, for two weeks later, on reports that Rs 270 million had been doled out of IB accounts for the purpose of toppling the Punjab government in 2008-09.
The SC ruled any illegal order if transmitted was not worthy to be obeyed as the compliance of an illegal or incompetent direction/order can neither be justified on the plea it came from a superior authority nor could it be defended on the ground that its non-compliance would have exposed the government servant concerned to the risk of disciplinary action.
The court order stated the recipients of money in Punjab include PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif getting Rs 3.5 million, Lt Gen (r) Rafaqat Rs 5.6 million, JI Rs 5 million, Abida Hussain Rs 1 million, Altaf Hussain Qureshi and Mustafa Sadiq Rs 500,000, miscellaneous and smaller group Rs 3.339; in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Mir Afzal Rs 10 million; in Sindh, Jatoi Rs 5 million, Jam Sadiq Rs 5 million, Junejo Rs 2.5 million, Pir Pagara Rs 2 million, Maulana Salahuddin Rs 300,000, miscellaneous and smaller groups Rs 5.4 million; in Balochistan, Humayun Marri (Akbar Bugti’s son-in-law) Rs 1.5 million, Jamali Rs 4 million, Kakar Rs 1 million, K Baloch Rs 500,000, Jam Yousaf Rs 750,000, Bezinjo Rs 500,000, Nadeem Mengal Rs 1 million.
The court also noted Brig (r) Kamal Alam Khan sent an application to the then chief justice requesting therein he may be impleaded as a party in the proceedings. In the application, he named the following officers of the armed forces, who, according to him, were part of the toppling operation: Brig (r) Hamid Saeed Akhtar, Brig (r) Amanullah, Lt Col (r) Eqbal Saeed Khan, Lt Col (r) Ejaz, Lt Col (r) Mir Akbar Ali, and Lt Col Salman Butt.
The court ruled directed for proceedings against the recipients of the money as well as against Younas Habib and directed the relevant authorities to ensure recovery of the money with interest.
It ruled that Rs 80 million, deposited in Account No 313 titled Survey and Construction Group Karachi maintained by the Military Intelligence (MI), with profit be transferred to Habib Bank Ltd and if the liability of HBL had not been adjusted, the same may be deposited in the treasury. The order said, “The instant human rights case stands disposed of in the above terms.”
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk