SC has nothing to do with Memogate: CJP

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court disposed of the Memogate Scandal case for being an unnecessary case and ruled that a commission constituted for it has already compiled its findings, while an FIR had also been registered, hence it the responsibility of the state to deal with in accordance with law and the court has nothing to do with it.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa on Thursday heard the Memogate case wherein former Pakistan ambassador to United States Husain Haqqani is accused of delivering a memo to Admiral (retd) Mike Mullen of the US through Mansoor Ijaz, an American businessman of Pakistani origin. On the last hearing held on December 31, 2018, amicus curie Ahmer Bilal Sufi and DG Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Bashir Memon informed the court that some development has taken place in the repatriation of Husain Haqqani, however, they requested that it could be shared in the chamber of the chief justice.

The Chief Justice Khosa disposed the case and remarked that for the last eight years, precious time has been wasted in the case, adding that a judicial commission has already submitted its findings on the matter while an FIR had also been registered, hence it is now up to the state whether it wants to continue proceedings on it or not. “It is a matter for the state either to arrest Husain Haqqani or start his trial and the court has nothing to do with the matter,” the chief justice remarked.

The chief justice asked as to whether the petitioners are present in the courtroom, to which the additional attorney general replied in negative. At this, the chief justice said that when the petitioners did not turn up to the court then why should they (court) waste their time. The AAG told the court that the matter involved some information of sensitive nature. Justice Khosa observed that he was quite surprised after examining the facts of the case. The chief justice questioned as to whether the state of Pakistan, armed forces and our Constitution are so weak that they can be frightened by a memo? “By the Grace of Allah Pakistan is a strong country and we needed not to worry about such matters,” the chief justice remarked.

The memo had reportedly offered government cooperation to the US in response to Washington backing against Pakistan’s military establishment in the wake of the May 2, 2011 raid which led to the killing of Osama bin Laden. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had invoked the apex court jurisdiction, seeking directives for investigation into the memo scandal. In March last year, ex-chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar took notice of the ‘Memogate’ case and gave Pakistani government one month's notice to bring back Hussain Haqqani, who is currently in the United States. The court had also appointed Ahmer Bilal Sufi, an expert on foreign litigations, as amicus curie (friend of court) to assist in Haqqani's repatriation. On October 18, 2018, Ahmer Bilal Sufi had informed the court that a special court has issued perpetual warrants of arrest for Hussain Haqqani on charges of criminal breach of trust, misappropriation, cheating and embezzlement of funds. He told the court the FIA had submitted challan No. 7/2018 on October 5 before a special court which had issued perpetual warrants to arrest Haqqani.