ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has decided to challenge in the Supreme Court by Saturday what it terms the controversial appointment of Admiral (retd) Fasih Bokhari as chairman of the National Accountability Bureau.
Speaking at a news conference at the Punjab House here on Thursday, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that after completing necessary homework and consultation process, the party leadership had given the go-ahead to its lawyer Akram Sheikh to file the petition by Saturday.
The PML-N stalwart said his party had no choice of its own for the office of the NAB chairman and it only wanted to see an impartial person on the post. And, therefore, it has decided to challenge Mr Bokhari’s appointment to fulfil its responsibility as an opposition party.
He said the process of appointment of Mr Bokhari was not different from that of Justice (retd) Deedar Hussain Shah. He said the Supreme Court had declared the appointment of Justice Deedar illegal on the grounds that no “meaningful consultation” had been made.
Chaudhry Nisar said President Asif Ali Zardari had appointed Mr Bokhari without completing the consultation process. He regretted that the letter written by the president in response to his objections to the appointment was first released to the media and then sent to him.
He said Mr Bokhari’s appointment was a negation of four Supreme Court verdicts and alleged that Mr Zardari did not want to see an independent and autonomous accountability institution in the country. Had there been an independent NAB, it would have taken notice of ill-gotten money stashed in Swiss banks, he added.
This is the second time the leader of opposition will be challenging the appointment of NAB chairman in the Supreme Court. Last year he challenged the appointment of Justice Deedar and got a verdict in his favour.
Two former NAB chairmen — Navaid Ahsan and Justice Deedar Shah — came under immense pressure from the Supreme Court during their tenures to pursue all NRO (National Reconciliation Ordinance) cases, including those relating to President Zardari.
But the PPP government said no case could be initiated against the president because he enjoyed constitutional immunity.
Under the NAB Ordinance, the government is required to consult the leader of opposition before appointing NAB chairman.
The PML-N rejected Mr Bokhari’s appointment on technical grounds, asking the government to propose a panel of possible candidates for the office and hold a “meaningful consultation” with it.
But Mr Zardari, in his reply to Chaudhry Nisar’s letter last week, rejected his objections and said Mr Bokhari’s appointment was in accordance with the law.
MFN STATUS: Chaudhry Nisar opposed the government’s move to grant most-favoured nation (MFN) status to India and said the issue should be debated in parliament before a decision was taken on the matter. He said his party was not against friendship and trade with India, but granting the MFN status was a different matter.
He said the PML-N wanted good relations with India, but not at the cost of Kashmir and national security.
ELECTION COMMISSION: The leader of opposition criticised the government for not brining a legislation to parliament to make the Election Commission of Pakistan an independent body. He said members of the ECP had been appointed under the 18th Amendment, but no legislation had been done to provide protection to the commission.
He said even its members were not getting their salary. Chaudhry Nisar said he had talked to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on the issue and advised him to enforce the law through an ordinance.
US SUPPORT: The PML-N leader again asked the government to come out with a reply to a report which had appeared in the international press saying that President Zardari had contacted the Obama administration asking it to restore Pakistan’s financial aid and promised to make appointments in Pakistan Army in accordance with Washington’s wishes.
He said if the news was false the president should have served a legal notice to the newspaper which had published the report. But the Presidency had not issued even a denial, he added.
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