Hussein Haqqani
Pakistan's former ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani. — File photo

ISLAMABAD: The judicial commission probing the memogate scandal on Friday completed recording testimonies of all relevant parties, DawnNews reported.

During the proceedings at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) building, Zahid Bukhari, who is the counsel for Husain Haqqani, said that if secretary memo-commission is sent to London for collecting more evidences, then he, on behalf of his client, will boycott the commission.

Speaking with the media representatives after the commission’s proceedings, Bukhari said that he has proven that Mansoor Ijaz has failed to produce any significant evidence against his client.

Deputy attorney general Tariq Jahangiri told media representatives that Ijaz is against Pakistan and its armed forces as he has confessed of writing anti-military articles.

While earlier, the memo-commission announced that it will decide on Saturday whether or not to send the commission’s secretary to London for further evidence collection.

In his concluding arguments of the proceedings, Mansoor Ijaz’s attorney Akram Shaikh said that his client is ready to handover his mobile phone set, but in the presence of commission’s secretary. “Husain Haqqani does not have a right to defend himself without appearing before the court,” Shaikh added.

However, Shaikh avoided the media representatives for any comments.

Earlier, Bukhari told the commission that Mansoor Ijaz had admitted to have written the memo.

Moreover, Bukhari said that Haqqani had resigned from the position of ambassador voluntarily and his client wanted a transparent investigation into the issue.

The counsel said Haqqani had complied with every directive of the commission other than the one requiring him to record his testimony in Islamabad. He said Haqqani was still prepared to record his testimony through a video-link.

“Mansoor Ijaz refused to appear before the parliamentary committee” which was looking into the memo scandal, Bukhari said, adding that Haqqani had appeared before that committee.

Responding to which, the commission said that the parliamentary committee was conducting a separate investigation into the subject.

The commission moreover said that Haqqani and Ijaz should not be compared as the latter was a foreign national whereas Haqqani was a Pakistani citizen and a former ambassador.

The commission, comprising of three judges, was meeting under the chairmanship of Balochistan High Court (BHC) Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa.

The scandal came to light when Ijaz, an American businessman, accused Haqqani of being behind a memo that accused the Pakistani military of plotting a coup in May and appealed to the Pentagon to help ward it off.

The accusation was followed by Haqqani’s resignation on Nov 22, 2011. The former ambassador has repeatedly denied any connection with the memo.

Memo-commission was formed on 30th December 2011 on Supreme Court’s directives and its term is due end on May 12, 2012.

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