ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif went into a huddle at his office here on Tuesday evening after the Lahore High Court’s decision and leakage of a joint investigation team (JIT) report on the killing of 14 Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) workers.

Dawn has learnt that the meeting which was also attended by top legal advisers of the government discussed the pros and cons in case an FIR has to be registered as ordered by a Lahore additional sessions judge on the 17 June Model Town incident.

According to an official, the prime minister will hold a conclusive meeting on Wednesday after which a final decision would be taken, but dominant discourse of the sitting was in favour of registering the criminal case as ruled by the court and letting the law take its course.

The official said participants of the meeting with a law background were of the view that the government shouldn’t get scared of the FIR because it would take ages for the complainant to prove the Punjab chief minister and his cabinet members guilty of the killings. “For CM Shahbaz Sharif it’s a case of moral responsibility as chief executive of the province, not of criminal liability,” one of the legal eagles was quoted as telling the prime minister.

However, according to the politicians who attended the meeting, may be on the face of it the FIR will not create an immediate problem for the party leadership, but it can be used by its adversaries any time in future. Therefore, they will have to be careful before taking the decision.

In his argument, a minister said that “after registration of the FIR, Imran Khan and other opponents of the government will argue that the CM or anybody else whose name is included in the case have no right to stay in power”.

Law Secretary Barrister Zafarullah Khan, Attorney General Salman Aslam Butt, former law minister and sitting Information Technology Minister Zahid Hamid, Information Minister Senator Parvez Rashid and the Prime Minister’s Political Secretary Dr Asif Kirmani were the main participants of the meeting.

The ruling PML-N has been virtually caught between the devil and deep see and it would not be an easy decision for the prime minister, the government source said, adding that some top lawyers of the country would also be consulted.

After the LHC dismissed the government’s plea against registration of the FIR, the government was left with little option but to take a decision on this issue.

Dr Tahirul Qadri has also given a deadline ending Wednesday evening, asking the government to register his FIR and warning that otherwise he wouldn’t be responsible for any of his follower’s actions. If the government goes ahead with the registration of the FIR, the decision will provide a face-saving exit to Dr Qadri, as this was one of his main demands before launching Inqilab march.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2014