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Pak SC dismisses Gilani’s plea to shelve contempt proceedings
Dealing a body blow to embattled Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani, Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday rejected his appeal against framing of contempt charges over his failure to reopen graft cases against the President, a move likely to plunge the country into a fresh political turmoil.
Before dismissing Gilani’s appeal against his February 13 appearance before the apex court for framing of contempt charges, Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who headed an eight- member bench, sought a clear answer from his lawyer if the Prime Minister would write a letter to the Swiss Government for reopening graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.
“We are ready to give you 10 minutes to talk to the Prime Minister on the phone and let us know,” he said. Gilani’s lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan replied “I have no mandate to do that.”
Meanwhile, another report said Mansoor Ijaz, the star witness in Pakistan’s memo scandal, will be allowed to record his testimony via a video-link from London, the judicial panel probing the episode ordered on Friday after his repeated failures to appear before it threatened to derail the investigation.
The judicial commission has set February 22 for Ijaz’s testimony that will be recorded from the Pakistani High Commission in the UK.
Dealing a body blow to embattled Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani, Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday rejected his appeal against framing of contempt charges over his failure to reopen graft cases against the President, a move likely to plunge the country into a fresh political turmoil.
Before dismissing Gilani’s appeal against his February 13 appearance before the apex court for framing of contempt charges, Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who headed an eight- member bench, sought a clear answer from his lawyer if the Prime Minister would write a letter to the Swiss Government for reopening graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.
“We are ready to give you 10 minutes to talk to the Prime Minister on the phone and let us know,” he said. Gilani’s lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan replied “I have no mandate to do that.”
Meanwhile, another report said Mansoor Ijaz, the star witness in Pakistan’s memo scandal, will be allowed to record his testimony via a video-link from London, the judicial panel probing the episode ordered on Friday after his repeated failures to appear before it threatened to derail the investigation.
The judicial commission has set February 22 for Ijaz’s testimony that will be recorded from the Pakistani High Commission in the UK.
