Mansoor Ijaz cites security concerns as a reason for not appearing before judicial commission

Mansoor Ijaz cites security concerns as a reason for not appearing before judicial commission

The Pakistani American businessman and central character in the whole Memogate saga Mansoor Ijaz has refused come to Pakistan, citing security concerns as a reason for his decision.

He has instead requested the judicial commission to record his statement in Zurich or London.

Ijaz’s counsel Akram Sheikh justified his client’s decision to stay out of Pakistan in front of the media, saying that the Pakistani American businessman had no intention of walking straight into the trap that the government was laying for him.

“It seems like a well-orchestrated trap to hold Mr Ijaz indefinitely in Pakistan after his deposition before the commission,” Sheikh said. “Therefore Mr Ijaz has decided to make a request to the commission to record his testimony in London or Zurich.”

Sheikh further went on to add that his client has concrete fears that the electronic evidence that is vital in the whole Memogate scandal can be completely destroyed. Therefore, the judicial commission should take alternative options such as travelling to
Zurich and London to record his client’s statement and take possession of the evidence that, according to Ijaz, can play a crucial role in the determination of the real culprit in the Memogate case.

The judicial commission has been set up by the Supreme Court to inquire into the Memogate scandal following Pakistan Muslim League N (PML-N) chief Nawaz Shareef’s petition. The commission has been given the authority to travel anyone in the world to carry
out its function.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister and a close aide of President Asif Ali Zardari, Rehman Malik, has stated that if Ijaz is willing to record his statement in Zurich or London and has the resources to bear the expenses of the commission’s travel, then he is most
welcomed to do that.

While Malik is apparently okay with the commission travelling abroad to record Ijaz’s statement, he along with numerous Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) ministers have been announcing dire consequences for the Pakistani American businessman if he steps onto
the Pakistani soil, threatening to take him into custody upon his arrival and put him on trail under Article 6, i.e. treason.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=10314

Posted by Muhammad Qasim Hassan on Jan 24 2012. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry