ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s top intelligence agency has moved the Islamabad HighCourt (IHC) against the remarks passed by Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiquiaccusing the agency’s officials of influencing the judicial proceedings.
The petition was filed by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) throughDeputy Attorney General Khawaja Imtiaz Ahmed, stating that the IHC judge,while hearing a missing person case, unnecessarily embroiled it in acontroversy.
The appeal, which will be heard by a two-member bench next week, pleadedthe court to expunge the adverse remarks of the judge from a judicial order.
The orders caused defamation of the country’s premier agency, army andjudiciary at the national and international level as the judge remarks arewidely shared on social media.
The ISI also asked the court to impose the cost of litigation on thepetitioner for filing an allegedly frivolous petition, Dawn News reported.
A case about alleged abduction of a man named Rabnawaz was filed by hisbrother Mohammad Iftikhar Raja with the high court, leveling allegationsagainst the ISI.
When Justice Siddiqui took up the case about the alleged missing person,the police produced Rabnawaz before the IHC who informed the court that hewent to Vehari on his own. But his brother Iftikhar insisted that Rabnawazwas abducted the the officials of the spy agencies.
On July 18, the high court judge while hearing the case expressed hisdispleasure over the alleged interference of secret agencies in the stateaffairs, saying they should focus on the country’s defense.
In the written court orders, Justice Siddqui also appealed to Chief of ArmyStaff General Qamar Javed Bajwa for barring his persons from interventionin the matters of other institutions, adding that the army chief shouldtake notice of the alarming situation, reported an Urdu website.
He claimed “Judges’ lives are in danger as their telephones are beingtapped by the officials of the security agencies”.
Addressing a representative of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), whoappeared in the court, Justice Siddiqui said: “Your personnel try to form acourt bench of their own wish and the army chief should be aware of themisdeeds committed by them”.
“Enforced disappearance of citizens, businessmen, and other influentialpersons has become a routine in the capital city”, he said in the writtenorders.
Saying the secret agencies should not cross the constitutional limits, theIHC judge ordered that interference in affairs of the judiciary, executivesand other departments should be restrained.
He also ordered to send the copy of court ruling to the army chief, ISIdirector general, secretary defense and Secretary interior.