While talking to Dr Moeed Pirzad Daniyal Aziz MNA PML-n said that Imran Khan could not achieve his desired objective from Panama Papers case on the basis of false allegations.
Daniyal said the PTI had not even produced a single evidence before the apex court. It is the PML 👎 which has produced the documents before the court and more will be submitted if needed, he added. PML-N leader Daniyal Aziz said the PTI Chairman Imran does not even know the basics of accountability.
Daniyal aziz said the said Imran Khan had made several self-contradictory statements about Bani Gala land purchase deal and was now seeking immunity from hearing to hide details from the Election Commission in the reference filed against him. Daniyal Aziz said Imran Khan and Jehangir Tareen challenged the references against them in Election Commission on basis of maintainability and jurisdiction.
Tonight With Moeed Pirzada: Daniyal Aziz On Panama Leaks
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: Panama case hearing continues in Apex court…
PTI spokesperson Fawad ch in an exclusive discussion with Dr Pirzada describes the stance of PTI in detail on panama leak hearing in Supreme Court of Pakistan. He said Prime Minister nawaz sharif’s speech in parliament after panama leaks is totally different from his children’s stance during their interviews.
He said since last one week Supreme Court is trying to know money trail of London properties of shareef family but their lawyer didn’t give that information.
PTI spokesperson fawad ch also said that according to prime minister’s lawyer makhdoom ali khan Prime minster is not aware that how his children became millionaire….
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: Will Donald Trump’s presidency face impeachment?
Dr Moeed Pirzada drew a very detailed picture of what is coming before Trump’s presidency as he is under immense pressure to part himself from his business interests and investments abroad.
Donald trump refused to withdrew from the ownership of his hotels chain all over the world. He refused to sell it or hand it over to trusts manage private managers, as in the past, former president Ronald Regan and George W Bush handed over their investments to private trusts, to avoid conflict of interest between public office and its likely influence on their private businesses as required by the Law.
Trump also was condemned for appointing his son in law as an adviser. Dr Moeed pointed out the story against trump, which mentioned that his presidency may face impeachment in 18 months of his office as a President of the U.S.
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: Burden of proof lies with PM Nawaz Sharif
Prime Minsiter cannot be acquitted from article 62,63. Senator Dr Babar Awan…..
Burden of proof lies with PM Nawaz Sharif, article 62 fully applies in Panamagate case, commented Senator Dr Babar Awan while joining Dr Moeed Pirzada at Dunya news program, “Tonight with Moeed Pirzada”.
Babar Awan, while referring to Musharraf’s disqualification in 2007 on the basis of article 62,63, which marked that he was not eligible to contest elections. He said that PM’s counsel claimed that they are preparing full evidences to substantiate his claim and later on another counsel was appointed who changed his stance before the court. He said ” In 1993, PM Nawaz was living in London’s flat, how come he denies and the proofs are indicating otherwise”.
Giving his expert opinion on article 62 and if court can disqualify the PM on article 62,he mentioned the case of Former PM Yousaf Raza Gilani, who was disqualified from the premiership.
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: The Kashmir Report Mishal Malik’s perspective!
In 2016, former Foreign Minister of India and BJP leader Yashwant Sinha published a report on the state of affairs in Kashmir. This report was contributed to by a five-member observer group that the former FM led, and visited the areas of Batgram, Anandnag and Baramulla.
The report said that the Kashmiri citizens are of the opinion, that the basic issue is the Indian government not accepting Kashmir as a political crisis.
It also said that the Kashmiri youth which comprise almost 68 percent of the population, are depressed and fearless. All of their daily routines and conversations consist of rebellious tendencies. The common people have it for a fact that the Delhi administration doesn’t wish to resolve this issue. They say that the former Prime Minster Vajpai had it right: Kashmir needs to be resolved as a human rights issue and not as a national security problem as the current regime views it.
Wife of Kashmiri uprising leader Yasin Malik and activist, Mishal Malik joined Doctor Moeed Pirzada to comment on the comprehensive report and get us up to date on the ongoing atrocities in Kashmir.
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada 02: PMLN vs PTI : BBC gives a new turn to the case!
Senior PML N leader Rana Afzal and Pakistan Tehreek E Insaf spokesperson Fawad Chaudhry joined Doctor Moeed Pirzada to comment on the BBC Urdu report development in the Panama case, the Prime Minister’s line of defense and future prospects. Rana Afzal, Member National Assembly and Parliamentary secretary for finance said that the Panama case is for the Supreme Court to judge, it cannot be concluded elsewhere. He also said that there is a long way to go to achieve the process of perfect democracy. The Panama reference does not hold the name of the Prime Minister, but his children. Fawad Chaudhry said that the Prime Minister should not have face enough to attend the World Economic Forum’s anti corruption seminar. He said that the in democratic states, accountability is carried out by the Parliament. He admitted that not being able to conduct intra party elections is a failure of Tehreek e Insaf
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada 01: PMLN vs PTI : BBC gives a new turn to the case!
Senior PML N leader Rana Afzal and Pakistan Tehreek E Insaf spokesperson Fawad Chaudhry joined Doctor Moeed Pirzada to comment on the BBC Urdu report development in the Panama case, the Prime Minister’s line of defense and future prospects. Rana Afzal, Member National Assembly and Parliamentary secretary for finance said that the Panama case is for the Supreme Court to judge, it cannot be concluded elsewhere. He also said that there is a long way to go to achieve the process of perfect democracy. The Panama reference does not hold the name of the Prime Minister, but his children. Fawad Chaudhry said that the Prime Minister should not have face enough to attend the World Economic Forum’s anti corruption seminar. He said that the in democratic states, accountability is carried out by the Parliament. He admitted that not being able to conduct intra party elections is a failure of Tehreek e Insaf
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: Obama’s final attack and BBC Urdu report
Doctor Moeed Pirzada’s take! The United States of America’s outgoing administration has started building up an attack line for Baltic states and is sending troops to Poland and Latvia is in the pipeline. This move has been approved of by the new president elect Donald Trump’s secretary for Defense General James Mattis. This development is creating fresh waves all around the international political spectrums. Doctor Moeed Pirzada offered his comment on the matter. Also, the BBC Urdu report published on January 13th 2017 that exclaimed that the London flats have since the early 90s, been owned by the same companies and the ownership has never shifted. These exclamations were only picked up by Dunya TV group in the mainstream media. This exhibited the pressure that the media industry has been operating in.
Tonight With Moeed Pirzada 2: Military courts are not the only & permanent Solution !
Military courts were defamed on a set Agenda. Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib………
Rana Sanaullah changed his stance on military courts. He said that ‘’ I never targeted the effectiveness of military courts, it should be made known that these courts are not the permanent solution’’.
Defense analyst Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib pointed out the ineffective implantation of National action plan on governments part. He said, ‘’If national action plan 20 points are implemented in true sprite, we will see an end to terrorism’’. On the reinstatement of the military courts as its tenure of two years have been finished, the general said that, it was the responsibility of the government to have created a convergence with the political parties in advance.
General Amjad said that it was a set agenda to defame the military courts. Rana Sanaullah added that he was aware of the fact that the government is seriously considering reinstatement of the Military courts.
Rana Sanaullah changed his stance on military courts. He said that ‘’ I never targeted the effectiveness of military courts, it should be made known that these courts are not the permanent solution’’.
Defense analyst Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib pointed out the ineffective implantation of National action plan on governments part. He said, ‘’If national action plan 20 points are implemented in true sprite, we will see an end to terrorism’’. On the reinstatement of the military courts as its tenure of two years have been finished, the general said that, it was the responsibility of the government to have created a convergence with the political parties in advance.
General Amjad said that it was a set agenda to defame the military courts. Rana Sanaullah added that he was aware of the fact that the government is seriously considering reinstatement of the Military courts.
Tonight With Moeed Pirzada 1: Military courts are not the only & permanent Solution !
Military courts were defamed on a set Agenda. Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib………
Rana Sanaullah changed his stance on military courts. He said that ‘’ I never targeted the effectiveness of military courts, it should be made known that these courts are not the permanent solution’’.
Defense analyst Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib pointed out the ineffective implantation of National action plan on governments part. He said, ‘’If national action plan 20 points are implemented in true sprite, we will see an end to terrorism’’. On the reinstatement of the military courts as its tenure of two years have been finished, the general said that, it was the responsibility of the government to have created a convergence with the political parties in advance.
General Amjad said that it was a set agenda to defame the military courts. Rana Sanaullah added that he was aware of the fact that the government is seriously considering reinstatement of the Military courts.
Rana Sanaullah changed his stance on military courts. He said that ‘’ I never targeted the effectiveness of military courts, it should be made known that these courts are not the permanent solution’’.
Defense analyst Lt(r) General Amjad Shoaib pointed out the ineffective implantation of National action plan on governments part. He said, ‘’If national action plan 20 points are implemented in true sprite, we will see an end to terrorism’’. On the reinstatement of the military courts as its tenure of two years have been finished, the general said that, it was the responsibility of the government to have created a convergence with the political parties in advance.
General Amjad said that it was a set agenda to defame the military courts. Rana Sanaullah added that he was aware of the fact that the government is seriously considering reinstatement of the Military courts.
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: 13th January 2017, BBC Urdu Published on London Apartments’
On 13th January 2017, BBC Urdu Published a story exclaiming the London Apartments’ to have had the same ownership since the early 90s; Neilson and Nescol limited. The Prime Minister’s son Mr.Hussein Nawaz has already admitted to owning these companies. These documents also claim that another flat in the same residential complex is owned by a company named Flagship Enterprises, the Director of which is Hassan Nawaz Sharif.
Doctor Moeed Pirzada offered his dissection on the matter in a charged, live monolgue.
Justice Siddique – Obituary of an imperfect man; just like all of us!
Moeed Pirzada |
Justice (retd) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, Sindh’s Governor died after chest pain, on Wednesday, January 11, 2017. He was 78, and was ill for quite some time. May his soul rest in peace. Amen!
Siddiqui was Sindh’s 31st governor, who took oath on November 11, 2016 when Sindh’s longest serving governor, Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad was forced to resign because of the controversy created around him after his war of words with Mustafa Kamal, former Mayor and now head of the Pak Sarzameen Party.
Siddiqui’s oath taking was delayed by a day because he was seriously ill, and immediately after this oath taking he was admitted in the hospital from where he was discharged on December 15, after an intensive care unit was set up in the Governor House. He barely survived 25 days after this special arrangement and died on Jan 11, 2017.
Governor Sindh Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui discharged from hospital https://t.co/ej2gXBtlmv
— DailyPakistan Global (@dailypakistangl) December 16, 2016
No doubt that given the circumstances surrounding his health his selection by PM Nawaz Sharif and his acceptance of the offer to become governor of Sindh were controversial from day one. And in any system, worthy of being called a democracy, this would have been subjected to serious scrutiny.
Honesty and integrity of Retd Justice Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui is beyond any doubt. But is he fit despite his age… https://t.co/kXQVXWNFnv
— Shah Nawaz Khan (@link2shah) November 22, 2016
After all it is only natural to ask: was PM Nawaz not aware, was not briefed on Siddiqui’s serious health condition? Are there no advisers or cabinet members around PM Nawaz Sharif to advise him on matters of state interest or PM Nawaz is totally independent in doing whatever pleases him without any regard to the consequences for the state of Pakistan? What is the yard stick of top level decision making in Pakistan? These will be serious questions in any democratic system. But Pakistan appears to be totally immune to such considerations.
One may ask: was Siddique himself not aware of his inability to serve as the governor of Pakistan’s second largest province? Or his desire to add the title of ‘Governor’ under his belt was so strong that it over powered any other consideration or reflection. Can one conclude that both Nawaz Sharif and late Saeed uz Zaman Siddiqui, in their calculus of personal interests, cared little about the decorum of the office of the Governor of Sindh. Many had thus speculated that Nawaz, fully aware of Siddiqui’s health condition, only selected him because he was trying to send some sort of the political message to the judiciary.
All of us have to die; the only certainty in man’s life is death. All religions and moral orders command us to become magnanimous and forgive people in their death and remember them by their good deeds. However, in a system, as unethical as Pakistan one has to be careful, because rich and powerful derive political mileage from every event, from every tragedy. And if we become a little more critical in ‘public interest’ it will be better for Pakistan’s teeming millions – 65% of whom are less than 35 years of age.
On Siddiqui’s death, Nawaz Sharif said that Siddiqui’s services will be remembered for the supremacy of the law and the constitution. He further said that Siddiqui had never compromised over principles and always confronted non-democratic characters. God Almighty will definitely forgive us if we remain a little skeptical about Nawaz Sharif’s commitment to supremacy of law, democracy and constitution etc etc, as some famous Punjabi politician had once written on a file somewhere. [in relaxation of rules x,y,z etc etc]
This eulogy of Justice Siddiqui has been repeated endlessly by almost all print and electronic media; most of that is a copy and paste job. Most South Asian political and social discourse runs on knee jerk stereotyping anyway; this practice is much older than the computer age. Independent critical thinking is rare and hordes of barbarians of all sorts are ready to fix those few who demonstrate ‘critical thinking’ of any sort.
So the basis of Justice Siddiqui’s larger than human life portrait is derived from a mythical account of his boldly defying Gen. Mushaarrf when he was the Chief Justice of Pakistan in 1999 when the Oct 12 military coup happened.
Apparently Justice Siddiqui refused to take a new oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and his famous words done to death by a potpourri of politicians and media were: “Taking an oath under the PCO, in my opinion, will be a deviation from the oath I had taken to defend the constitution of 1973”.
Since hero-worship is very deep in South Asia, most have conveniently forgotten that Siddiqui was always viewed as a “man of Nawaz Sharif” because of his controversial role in engineering a revolt against former CJP Sajjad Ali Shah. This was the time period, in 1997, when hordes of barbarians organized by Nawaz Sharif and his party actually stormed the Supreme Court in Islamabad and Honorable judges, in sheer horror, had to run with their lives.
Media persons can be gagged or punished by saying a few loose words but – just like Model Town massacre in June 2014 – real schemers and perpetrators of the infamous horrendous attack on Supreme Court were never punished. Admittedly Justice Sajjad Ali Shah was no angel either and was hands in glove with the then president, Farooq Khan Leghari and both were apparently planning a coup against Nawaz Sharif.
Nawaz planned his counter-coup with the help of his judges and the period of “brief case diplomacy” and the alleged horse trading amongst few good men is still to this day the most painful and controversial chapter of Pakistan’s judicial history. While all that was happening, Pakistani military remained neutral; what is merely a euphemistic term to refer to the fact that under Gen. Jehangir Karamat, military remained aligned with the Punjabi Prime Minister – this period in no small way created the sense of helplessness and sentiments that lead to a widespread relief and welcome when Gen. Musharraf finally intervened to end Nawaz regime on Oct 12, 1999.
But lets come back to 1997; In Nawaz Sharif’s counter-coup, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah was humiliated, dragged in mud and soon removed as the chief justice on the basis of rules of seniority. Justice Siddiqui always defended his position; he maintained that the decision that Mr Shah’s appointment was not in accordance with the Constitution was made by a 10-judge bench and not him alone. But its not a rocket science to fathom that all what happened was politics, ugly politics; politics of one side against the other, politics of one interest group against the the other; there were not any principles; it was not about rule of law or constitution; it was about power and privilege.
Mr Siddiqui, the loyalist, later became the Chief Justice of Pakistan in July 1999 — less than three months before Gen Musharraf toppled the then Nawaz Sharif-led government in a bloodless coup on Oct 12, 1999. When the general held the Constitution in abeyance and issued the PCO two days after the takeover, in a gesture of good will, CJP Siddiqui and other judges of the superior judiciary were not asked to take their oath afresh.
This goody goody situation changed as soon as the famous Zafar Ali Shah case was filed in the apex court. Gen Musharraf and people around him feared that CJP Siddiqui, the known Nawaz loyalist, will plan something in alignment with Nawaz and his supporters. It was then that Musharraf asked the judges of the superior judiciary to take the oath under the PCO. It was, as some insiders claimed, a pure “Machiavellian move” to shunt aside those who were not wanted. Justice Siddique, the known Nawaz loyalist, was one of them.
It was then that apparently, principled Justice Siddiqui refused to take a new oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and his famous words done to death by a potpourri of politicians and media were: “Taking an oath under the PCO, in my opinion, will be a deviation from the oath I had taken to defend the constitution of 1973”.
But there is another version of events too. He and another honorable Justice were never offered the oath or such terms were crafted which were only designed to get rid of them. It was politics once again – there were no principles on either side. Many will remember that there was another famous oath under a PCO offered by Gen. Zia ul Haq in 1981. Young men are generally more idealist than old, but a young Siddique had gladly signed that PCO. He once explained this by saying that “I was appointed by a dictator, but later took oath under the 1973 constitution” But 1981 PCO was only a few years after the 1973 constitution came into effect. Gen. Zia had executed, ZA Bhutto, the architect of 1973 constitution – through a process what is often described as a ‘judicial murder’. If Siddiqui and others thought of resigning, from their respective positions, whatever these were, its not known.
In 2008 elections, Nawaz fielded Justice Siddique as presidential candidate, but it was only a matter of prestige and optics for it was obvious that PPP and allies will manage a clear majority for Asif Ali Zardari. After 2013 elections, Nawaz could have easily appointed Justice Siddique as President of Pakistan. He would have been far more impressive, far more deserving, far more worthy of that office than its incumbent, Mamnoon Hussain. Argument was that Siddiqui was not a card carrying member of PMLN, but neither was he in Nov 2016 when Nawaz made him, in the terminal hours of his life, Governor of Sindh. No wonder many suspect that once again there were no principles and Nawaz was only playing politics; sending a message: “I am eternally willing to reward all those who do favors”
Jst (R) Saeed uz Zaman Siddiqui was made Governor Sindh because Mian sb thought he needs to be ‘rewarded’: Mushahidullah Khan #PMLN pic.twitter.com/PtuVVtd4nU
— Mansoor Ali Khan (@_Mansoor_Ali) November 20, 2016
Those who are keen students of history, will come across this criticism from western writers that most Muslim history consists of shameless hagiography; whether it aptly describes the medieval Muslim historian or not, it certainly describes most Pakistani media. Let’s grow out of this immaturity; lets be honest with our young; 65% of whom are 35 or below.
Perhaps Justice Siddiqui was only human – imperfect like all of us. May his soul rest in peace and may Allah grant fortitude to all loved ones to bear his loss. Amen!
Moeed Pirzada is a known TV Anchor and Editor Strategic Affairs with Dunya News, in Pakistan. He was a Brittanica Chevening Scholar at London School of Economics; studied law at LSE and International Relations at Columbia University. He tweets at: MoeedNj
Justice Siddique – Obituary of an imperfect man; just like all of us!
Justice (retd) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, Sindh’s Governor died after chest pain, on Wednesday, January 11, 2017. He was 78, and was ill for quite some time. May his soul rest in peace. Amen!
Siddiqui was Sindh’s 31st governor, who took oath on November 11, 2016 when Sindh’s longest serving governor, Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad was forced to resign because of the controversy created around him after his war of words with Mustafa Kamal, former Mayor and now head of the Pak Sarzameen Party.
Siddiqui’s oath taking was delayed by a day because he was seriously ill, and immediately after this oath taking he was admitted in the hospital from where he was discharged on December 15, after an intensive care unit was set up in the Governor House. He barely survived 25 days after this special arrangement and died on Jan 11, 2017.
No doubt that given the circumstances surrounding his health his selection by PM Nawaz Sharif and his acceptance of the offer to become governor of Sindh were controversial from day one. And in any system, worthy of being called a democracy, this would have been subjected to serious scrutiny.
After all it is only natural to ask: was PM Nawaz not aware, was not briefed on Siddiqui’s serious health condition? Are there no advisers or cabinet members around PM Nawaz Sharif to advise him on matters of state interest or PM Nawaz is totally independent in doing whatever pleases him without any regard to the consequences for the state of Pakistan? What is the yard stick of top level decision making in Pakistan? These will be serious questions in any democratic system. But Pakistan appears to be totally immune to such considerations.
One may ask: was Siddique himself not aware of his inability to serve as the governor of Pakistan’s second largest province? Or his desire to add the title of ‘Governor’ under his belt was so strong that it over powered any other consideration or reflection. Can one conclude that both Nawaz Sharif and late Saeed uz Zaman Siddiqui, in their calculus of personal interests, cared little about the decorum of the office of the Governor of Sindh. Many had thus speculated that Nawaz, fully aware of Siddiqui’s health condition, only selected him because he was trying to send some sort of the political message to the judiciary.
All of us have to die; the only certainty in man’s life is death. All religions and moral orders command us to become magnanimous and forgive people in their death and remember them by their good deeds. However, in a system, as unethical as Pakistan one has to be careful, because rich and powerful derive political mileage from every event, from every tragedy. And if we become a little more critical in ‘public interest’ it will be better for Pakistan’s teeming millions – 65% of whom are less than 35 years of age.
On Siddiqui’s death, Nawaz Sharif said that Siddiqui’s services will be remembered for the supremacy of the law and the constitution. He further said that Siddiqui had never compromised over principles and always confronted non-democratic characters. God Almighty will definitely forgive us if we remain a little skeptical about Nawaz Sharif’s commitment to supremacy of law, democracy and constitution etc etc, as some famous Punjabi politician had once written on a file somewhere. [in relaxation of rules x,y,z etc etc]
This eulogy of Justice Siddiqui has been repeated endlessly by almost all print and electronic media; most of that is a copy and paste job. Most South Asian political and social discourse runs on knee jerk stereotyping anyway; this practice is much older than the computer age. Independent critical thinking is rare and hordes of barbarians of all sorts are ready to fix those few who demonstrate ‘critical thinking’ of any sort.
So the basis of Justice Siddiqui’s larger than human life portrait is derived from a mythical account of his boldly defying Gen. Mushaarrf when he was the Chief Justice of Pakistan in 1999 when the Oct 12 military coup happened.
Apparently Justice Siddiqui refused to take a new oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and his famous words done to death by a potpourri of politicians and media were: “Taking an oath under the PCO, in my opinion, will be a deviation from the oath I had taken to defend the constitution of 1973”.
Since hero-worship is very deep in South Asia, most have conveniently forgotten that Siddiqui was always viewed as a “man of Nawaz Sharif” because of his controversial role in engineering a revolt against former CJP Sajjad Ali Shah. This was the time period, in 1997, when hordes of barbarians organized by Nawaz Sharif and his party actually stormed the Supreme Court in Islamabad and Honorable judges, in sheer horror, had to run with their lives.
Media persons can be gagged or punished by saying a few loose words but – just like Model Town massacre in June 2014 – real schemers and perpetrators of the infamous horrendous attack on Supreme Court were never punished. Admittedly Justice Sajjad Ali Shah was no angel either and was hands in glove with the then president, Farooq Khan Leghari and both were apparently planning a coup against Nawaz Sharif.
Nawaz planned his counter-coup with the help of his judges and the period of “brief case diplomacy” and the alleged horse trading amongst few good men is still to this day the most painful and controversial chapter of Pakistan’s judicial history. While all that was happening, Pakistani military remained neutral; what is merely a euphemistic term to refer to the fact that under Gen. Jehangir Karamat, military remained aligned with the Punjabi Prime Minister – this period in no small way created the sense of helplessness and sentiments that lead to a widespread relief and welcome when Gen. Musharraf finally intervened to end Nawaz regime on Oct 12, 1999.
But lets come back to 1997; In Nawaz Sharif’s counter-coup, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah was humiliated, dragged in mud and soon removed as the chief justice on the basis of rules of seniority. Justice Siddiqui always defended his position; he maintained that the decision that Mr Shah’s appointment was not in accordance with the Constitution was made by a 10-judge bench and not him alone. But its not a rocket science to fathom that all what happened was politics, ugly politics; politics of one side against the other, politics of one interest group against the the other; there were not any principles; it was not about rule of law or constitution; it was about power and privilege.
Mr Siddiqui, the loyalist, later became the Chief Justice of Pakistan in July 1999 — less than three months before Gen Musharraf toppled the then Nawaz Sharif-led government in a bloodless coup on Oct 12, 1999. When the general held the Constitution in abeyance and issued the PCO two days after the takeover, in a gesture of good will, CJP Siddiqui and other judges of the superior judiciary were not asked to take their oath afresh.
This goody goody situation changed as soon as the famous Zafar Ali Shah case was filed in the apex court. Gen Musharraf and people around him feared that CJP Siddiqui, the known Nawaz loyalist, will plan something in alignment with Nawaz and his supporters. It was then that Musharraf asked the judges of the superior judiciary to take the oath under the PCO. It was, as some insiders claimed, a pure “Machiavellian move” to shunt aside those who were not wanted. Justice Siddique, the known Nawaz loyalist, was one of them.
It was then that apparently, principled Justice Siddiqui refused to take a new oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and his famous words done to death by a potpourri of politicians and media were: “Taking an oath under the PCO, in my opinion, will be a deviation from the oath I had taken to defend the constitution of 1973”.
But there is another version of events too. He and another honorable Justice were never offered the oath or such terms were crafted which were only designed to get rid of them. It was politics once again – there were no principles on either side. Many will remember that there was another famous oath under a PCO offered by Gen. Zia ul Haq in 1981. Young men are generally more idealist than old, but a young Siddique had gladly signed that PCO. He once explained this by saying that “I was appointed by a dictator, but later took oath under the 1973 constitution” But 1981 PCO was only a few years after the 1973 constitution came into effect. Gen. Zia had executed, ZA Bhutto, the architect of 1973 constitution – through a process what is often described as a ‘judicial murder’. If Siddiqui and others thought of resigning, from their respective positions, whatever these were, its not known.
In 2008 elections, Nawaz fielded Justice Siddique as presidential candidate, but it was only a matter of prestige and optics for it was obvious that PPP and allies will manage a clear majority for Asif Ali Zardari. After 2013 elections, Nawaz could have easily appointed Justice Siddique as President of Pakistan. He would have been far more impressive, far more deserving, far more worthy of that office than its incumbent, Mamnoon Hussain. Argument was that Siddiqui was not a card carrying member of PMLN, but neither was he in Nov 2016 when Nawaz made him, in the terminal hours of his life, Governor of Sindh. No wonder many suspect that once again there were no principles and Nawaz was only playing politics; sending a message: “I am eternally willing to reward all those who do favors”
Those who are keen students of history, will come across this criticism from western writers that most Muslim history consists of shameless hagiography; whether it aptly describes the medieval Muslim historian or not, it certainly describes most Pakistani media. Let’s grow out of this immaturity; lets be honest with our young; 65% of whom are 35 or below.
Perhaps Justice Siddiqui was only human – imperfect like all of us. May his soul rest in peace and may Allah grant fortitude to all loved ones to bear his loss. Amen!
Tonight with Moeed Pirzada: Controversy over authority: Karachi Mayor’s Exclusive !
Part-1
Part-2
The Mayor of Karachi Waseem Akhtar joined in to talk about being the Mayor of the 7th largest city in the World, the city’s mammoth problems and the minimal authorities that he has been bestowed with. The Mayor said that on the Supreme Court’s verdict, Local body elections were conducted but the powers were not devolved to administer the city. He said that even if he were to get to exercise maximum powers of the Mayor, they would not be more than 27 percent of the total devolution. Waseem Akhtar also said that his party had protested for administrative authorities for the Mayor but to no avail. He also said that on the matter, Jamaat e Islami and Pakistan Tehreek E Insaf had not supported them. Commenting on his initial status, he said that as soon as he got elected as Mayor, 40 additional charges were brought against him. He said that it was sad how his name got included in the fourth schedule. The Mayor also commented on the situation of Karachi saying that there are heaps over heaps of litter all over the city and with limited resources, his Municipality is trying to tackle the problem.
Tonight With Moeed Pirzada: India may divert Trump’s attention with another drama
Prior to the inauguration ceremony of President elect Donald Trump, India could be planning something dangerous in the region which will divert the attention of newly elected president of United State Donald Trump. India has been trying to portray Pakistan as state sponsored terror state since decades. For that purpose India have also staged various incident and blamed Pakistan for all those terrorist activities which ultimately benefited India.
In 1995 Al-Faran group which was unfamiliar, kidnapped six western tourists in Kashmir and demanded release of prisoners. Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark in 2012 published a book ‘The Meadow’, which exposed the involvement of Indian intelligence and military officials in the kidnapping of Western tourists, who also knew the location of hostages. They also got to know that the local police and IB were trying hard to negotiate and get hostages released but high officials of intelligence and military derailed the process nor any foreign agency was allowed in intervene in the matter.
Indian action was part of larger plan to present Pakistan as the sponcer of insurgency in Kashmir as harsh as light as possible to the world at large, ‘The Meadow’ claims. Similarly in March 2000, when US President Clinton was on the way to India, 36 Sikhs was killed in a Chattisingpura incident in Kashmir. His trip was over shadowed by the incident which was also blamed as Pakistan sponsored action.
In December 2001 after 9/11 when Pakistan was a close ally of United States, an attack took place in India parliament which also left many mysteries. The next day India intelligence got all the details of attacker and facilitators which established suspicions in Indian intelligence. Pathankot and Uri attacks were also of similar pattern where Indian intelligence got all the details of attackers and their links with Pakistan. Such incident is possible before or soon after the Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony to sabotage Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir’s freedom struggle and Indian atrocities.