Who added ‘Tarka’ to JIT?

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar’s remarks, one after the other during the last few days, about the inclusion of ISI and MI members in the Panama JIT have triggered a controversy as to who had added “Tarka” (spice) to the probe team that was formed last year to investigate the Sharifs’ offshore companies.

On Monday last, the CJP said that the ISI and MI members were included in the JIT for “Tarka”. Two days later, on Wednesday, the Chief Justice is reported by the media to have said that the ISI and MI members were included in the JIT by the-then Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

Chaudhry Nisar, however, promptly came up with a rejoinder the same evening that he had nothing to do with the constitution of the Panama JIT, which he insisted was established following the order of the apex court itself.

While hearing a case of transfer of billions of rupees using fake accounts on Monday, the CJP asked DG FIA about the names of persons who were included in the JIT constituted in the Panama case. When the DG FIA replied that Wajid Zia was heading the JIT with Irfan Mangi from NAB, Bilal Rasool from SECP along with members from the ISI and MI, the CJP had remarked that the members from the ISI and MI were included in the JIT for “Tarka”.

“May be the members of the ISI and MI were included in the Panama Papers Leaks case to spice up (Tarka) the probe,” a newspaper report quoted the CJP as saying, adding that the military officers would not be a part of the proposed JIT in fake accounts case as the apex court wanted to include officials who are aware of white-collar crimes.

On Wednesday, while hearing the same case the CJP is reported by the media to have denied that the court had called for the inclusion of the MI and ISI officials in the Panamagate JIT.

"We discovered that Chaudhry Nisar had included them in the JIT," the CJP was quoted by the media to have claimed. Later in the evening Chaudhry Nisar denied that he had any role in the formation of the JIT.

The Panama JIT was constituted on the order of the SC, which in its Panama Papers judgment issued on April 20, 2017 had directed: “In normal circumstances, such exercise could be conducted by the NAB but when its chairman appears to be indifferent and even unwilling to perform his part, we are constrained to look elsewhere and therefore, constitute a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) comprising of the following members:

i) A senior officer of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), not below the rank of Additional Director General who shall head the team having firsthand experience of investigation of white collar crime and related matters;

ii) A representative of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB);

iii) A nominee of the Security & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) familiar with the issues of money laundering and white collar crimes;

iv) A nominee of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP);

v) A seasoned officer of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) nominated by its Director General; and

vi) A seasoned officer of Military Intelligence (MI) nominated by its Director General.”