KP govt not to write to PHC again for forming commission

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on Thursday decided not to rewrite a letter to the Peshawar High Court (PHC) chief justice to form an inquiry commission to investigate the May 9 violence. Now the provincial government would conduct the probe by naming an officer. KP Minister for Law Aftab Alam said the provincial government had requested the PHC chief justice through a letter to order the formation of an inquiry commission to expose the perpetrators of the May 9 mayhem. However, he said, the PHC CJ returned the letter with some objections. “It is not mandatory for us to probe the events of May 9 through judges. The provincial government can form a commission or assign the job to an officer with powers of a civil judge to investigate the violent incidents,” he said, adding they had trust in the judiciary and hence requested it to probe the matter in question.

He said the KP government wanted the judicial inquiry commission to help assess the damage caused in the aftermath of May 9 riots.

Meanwhile, KP Advocate General Shah Faisal Utmankhel said he had sent a detailed letter to the provincial government and advised it to rewrite a letter to the PHC for the inquiry commission.

The provincial cabinet had approved the letter in June requesting the chief justice of PHC to form a judicial commission for the purpose.