New inquiry commission formed to probe Faizabad sit-in, SC told

The interim federal government has formed a three-member inquiry commission tasked with identifying persons responsible for Faizabad dharna 2017, AGP Mansoor Awan told the Supreme Court on Wednesday. The inquiry commission will be led by former IGP Syed Akhtar Hussain Shah and will propose legal action against those it finds responsible for the sit-in that crippled routine life in Islamabad in 2014. The apex court is hearing a set of review pleas challenging the February 2019 Faizabad judgment authored by now Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa. The court had earlier rejected a fact-finding committee formed by the interim government for this purpose after all eight petitioners sought to withdraw their review pleas. At the last hearing, three-member bench, led by CJP Qazi Faez Isa, put the caretaker federal government in a precarious position after it dismissed the fact-finding committee to ensure enforcement of the directives from the Faizabad dharna judgment delivered four years ago. Read Gen Faiz accused of media manipulation during Faizabad sit-in The turn of events had ignited a debate, raising the question of whether the present establishment will welcome the top court’s hand of justice and unearth the truth. The general impression suggests that won't be the case as the powerful circles will prevent setting a precedent of holding individuals accountable, even if the accused wears a retired general's stripes. At the centre of the last hearing held on Nov 1 was retired General Faiz Hameed, also cited in former Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) chief Absar Alam's affidavit for having meddled with the organisation's operations. Notably, throughout the session, CJP Isa repeatedly grilled the current PEMRA Chairman Saleem Baig about who had ordered him to file a review petition against the Faizabad protest judgment. He expressed an expectation in the judicial order for an investigation into the coincidence of review petitions filed by the government and other autonomous bodies in the same case. It is pertinent to note that the case has a distinctive history of CJP Isa having been subjected to a 'tough time' from the then security establishment post-judgment. Standing solitary, Isa fought back gracefully, even as his fellow jurists initially showed reluctance to rally behind him in difficult times. However, the majority of judges finally stood with him and accepted the review petitions against ex-CJP Umar Ata Bandial's judgment to refer his family's property matter to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

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