ISLAMABAD: A three-member bench, headed by CJP Asif Saeed Khosa, on today (Tuesday) conducted a thorough hearing of petitions, seeking formulation of inquiry commission to probe into the Videogate scandal surrounding the controversial Judge Arshad Malik.
The bench, consisting of Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed and Justice Umara Ata Bandial, first heard the petition of a lawyer, Ishtiaq Ahmed Mirza, filed through his counsel Chaudhry Munir Sadiq. Mohammad Ikram Chaudhry, the legal counsel for a second petitioner Advocate Sohail Akhtar, also presented his arguments before the apex court.
The counsels expressed “serious reservations” against tainting of the sanctity and prestige of the Judiciary. The counsel Sadiq demanded the judiciary to formulate a commission to conduct investigations on the basis of contempt of court.
The counsel said that the decision would not be by the apex court; rather it would be based on the findings of a commission. The CJP Khosa, affirming to the suggestion, remarked that the court was steering into that direction. “…[t]he dust should now settle," remarked Justice Bandial lamenting the scandalous contours of the matter.
Meanwhile, the counsel suggested action based on criminal and cyber [crime]. A third petitioner, Advocate Tariq Asad, personally pleading his case asked for a forensic audit into the video.
It is pertinent to recall that on July 6, PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz opened a Pandora’s box with a startling claim that the judge "confessed" to have been “pressurised and blackmailed” to convict her father in the Al-Azizia reference. The judge Arshad Malik, however, denied being under any pressure, making counter allegations against Nawaz Sharif and the PML-N for "bribing, threatening” him.
The bench, consisting of Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed and Justice Umara Ata Bandial, first heard the petition of a lawyer, Ishtiaq Ahmed Mirza, filed through his counsel Chaudhry Munir Sadiq. Mohammad Ikram Chaudhry, the legal counsel for a second petitioner Advocate Sohail Akhtar, also presented his arguments before the apex court.
The counsels expressed “serious reservations” against tainting of the sanctity and prestige of the Judiciary. The counsel Sadiq demanded the judiciary to formulate a commission to conduct investigations on the basis of contempt of court.
The counsel said that the decision would not be by the apex court; rather it would be based on the findings of a commission. The CJP Khosa, affirming to the suggestion, remarked that the court was steering into that direction. “…[t]he dust should now settle," remarked Justice Bandial lamenting the scandalous contours of the matter.
Meanwhile, the counsel suggested action based on criminal and cyber [crime]. A third petitioner, Advocate Tariq Asad, personally pleading his case asked for a forensic audit into the video.
It is pertinent to recall that on July 6, PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz opened a Pandora’s box with a startling claim that the judge "confessed" to have been “pressurised and blackmailed” to convict her father in the Al-Azizia reference. The judge Arshad Malik, however, denied being under any pressure, making counter allegations against Nawaz Sharif and the PML-N for "bribing, threatening” him.