Allegations by senior Pakistani judges that intelligence agencies applied pressure in a case involving former Prime Minister Imran Khan have reached the country’s highest court following the publication of an unprecedented letter that has taken Pakistan by storm. .
The letter from six high court judges alleges family abductions, torture, cameras installed in bedrooms and intimidation by the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence Agency (ISI).
In one case, the judges said they were forced to hear an appeal against Khan even though a majority of the judges found the sentence could not be sustained.
“Considerable pressure was exerted by ISI operatives through the judges’ friends and relatives on judges who opined that the petition was not maintainable. I asked for “One of the judges had to be hospitalized due to stress-induced hypertension,” the letter claims.
A judge’s brother-in-law claimed to have been abducted by “persons claiming to be ISI operatives” and “tortured into making false allegations”.
Mr. Khan was removed from office in a vote of confidence in April 2022, and was subsequently arrested and indicted on charges including corruption, selling state gifts, and leaking state secrets, and was sentenced to 10 to 14 years in prison in many cases. There is. He has been in jail since August, charged in more than 100 cases. Mr Khan denies all charges, insisting his treatment was politically motivated and saying Pakistan’s powerful military commander had a “personal grudge” against him. denounced. The military denied his claims.
At the beginning of Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa said he would not tolerate any challenge to the independence of the judiciary. Supreme Court Justice Athar Minara said the letter was referring to what has been happening in Pakistan for the past 76 years. “We can’t bury our heads in the sand like ostriches,” he said.
Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari, Mr Khan’s international media and affairs adviser, said the letters written by the judges made it clear that the court had been under pressure for at least the past two years.
“This is not the first time, and it will not be the last, that military authorities and ‘agents’ have pressed our courts for the verdict they want. But the tactics used this time were horrifying, from installing cameras in the judge’s bedroom to intimidation of the judge and his family,” Buhari said.
Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said it was unprecedented in Pakistan’s history for senior judges to make public allegations of intelligence interference.
“This is a test for the Supreme Court, as its judges seek justice and guidance from the Supreme Judicial Council to end government interference.”
The judges said in their letter that they had previously informed the chief justice of the High Court and the Supreme Court about the threats, and that the ISI military commander had told the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in May last year that “the ISI There are no employees,” he said. We will approach the IHC judge.” However, he claimed that interference by intelligence agents continues.
The letter came a week after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of High Court Justice Shaukat Siddiqui, who accused ISI operatives of being involved in political maneuvering and manipulation of high court decisions. He was dismissed after making this public statement. Khan was the prime minister at the time.
Analyst Hasnat Malik said Khan’s own record in office has been poor and he has sided with military authorities, but he and his party are now bearing the brunt of that pressure.
“We have seen in the past that judges face pressure from operatives for political maneuvering. But this new episode of letters is mainly against Khan and his party. “It is the Supreme Court and the chief justice who will decide the future of the judiciary.”
Intelligence officials denied the letter’s allegations. “The accusations made by the honorable judges of the IHC are frivolous in nature and taken out of context. The case against former Prime Minister Imran Khan is purely legal and has no connection with law enforcement agencies. No,” the official said.
“The allegation of my brother-in-law’s abduction is also just a fabrication and is being leveled without any evidence. The matter will be decided by the Supreme Court and aired on national media, so all sides will be exposed to the public without prejudice.” “The intelligence community expects a free and fair hearing of the case that must be brought to its logical conclusion.”
