Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa on Monday voiced displeasure with the report produced by an inquiry commission established to probe into the 2017 Faizabad sit-in by the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). He said it seemed the probe body was unaware of its own responsibility.
He also remarked that if the Faizabad sit-in decision had been implemented, the May 9 incident might not have happened.
The CJP made these remarks as a three-member Supreme Court bench took up a set of review petitions filed against the court's 2019 judgement in the Faizabad sit-in case.
The hearing today was broadcast live on the Supreme Court website and YouTube channel, with Justice Isa, Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, and Justice Naeem Akhtar Awan serving as members of the bench.
The harsh ruling, which was written by Justice Isa years prior to his oath of office as the CJP, directed the services chiefs and the Defense Ministry to penalise their officials who were found to have violated their oath. Additionally, it had instructed the federal government to keep an eye on individuals who support terrorism, extremism, and hate speech and to take legal action against them.
Also Read: Faizabad sit-in commission report submitted to Supreme Court
Several government departments were also found to have been causing inconvenience to the public during the 20-day sit-in that paralysed life in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
The Ministry of Defence, the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the PTI, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra), the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), AML chief Sheikh Rashid, and Ijazul Haq filed appeals against the verdict. But the majority of the petitioners backed down later and withdrew their petitions.
Absar Alam, the former head of Pemra, had previously revealed details about "media coercion" and intelligence agency meddling during the Faizabad sit-in at a previous hearing.
The SC had indicated in a November order addressing the petitions that it anticipated the government would complete the fact-finding investigation into the sit-in within the allotted time. Additionally, it had given ECP a month to write and turn in a report regarding the TLP and its financing.
Also Read: Faizabad sit-in inquiry commission gives clean chit to Faiz Hameed
During the hearing on Monday, CJP Isa expressed his dismay at the report that the commission put together and submitted.
“I cannot comprehend what level of mind prepared this report. The commission does not even know what its responsibility was,” he remarked.
The hearing
The attorney general for Pakistan responded negatively when asked if he had seen the report the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had submitted.
The attorney general brought up the statement made by Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed before the commission, stating that it was not the duty of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to investigate terrorist financing.
Also Read: Chief executive made decisions about Faizabad sit-in on behalf of provincial govt: report
“If it’s not their responsibility, then whose responsibility is it?” Justice Isa asked. He asked where the other members of the commission were and what kind of report they had made.
Examining the report in detail, CJP Isa noted that two paragraphs stated that TLP was not receiving financial assistance and that it was not the ISI's responsibility.
Judge Isa asked the AGP to consider the extent of losses the nation had incurred as a result of the sit-in at Faizabad. “Kill, vandalise and leave; what method is this?”
The CJP remarked that those who do not learn a lesson should be taught a lesson, adding that the state would have to impose its writ. "People's properties were set on fire. The poor victims were not at fault. Don't turn the arsonists into heroes," he remarked.
CJP Isa said according to the commission, Rana Sanaullah was running the Punjab government and was responsible. The commission did not say who violated the oath. "How can the commission say that the protesters should have been stopped in Punjab? It is the right of every citizen to protest peacefully. I don't know what the commission was afraid of; it seems it had some grudge against the Punjab government," he said.
The attorney general argued that the entire focus of the commission was only on why the violent mob was allowed to reach Islamabad from Punjab. Justice Irfan Saadat Khan remarked that the commission had put all the blame on the Punjab government. The CJP said the commission had written the entire report against the Punjab government for not interfering.
He further said the report mentioned the Punjab police chief, adding that it seems there was an old rivalry with the IGP to even the score. He further remarked that the nation's time had been wasted in this report, as there was no mention of the TLP members. "Were the TLP people called? Had they been called, the truth would have come out."
Justice Isa said the commission has suggested following the laws that already existed. "If the Faizabad sit-in decision of 2019 had been followed, the incident of May 9 might not have happened," he added.
The attorney general said the review petitions written by the commission were unanimously filed by everyone and withdrawn on their own grounds. CJP Isa taunted that he was surprised how the commission members remained in the police force, adding that it was akin to asking a thief if he had committed theft. All the review petitioners should have been asked because it was a "beautiful coincidence" that so many applications were filed together.
The chief justice further said that someone must have approved the review pleas, adding that the Faizabad sit-in commission report was something to give to the class 5 students. The court remarked that there were inconsistencies in the commission report: on the one hand, it was written that General (retd) Faiz Hameed did not call Absar Alam to resume channel transmissions, while on the other, they say that the former spy chief did call the former Pemra chairman.
