ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday decided to indict ex-chief justice of Gilgit-Baltistan Rana Shamim and others on January 7, 2022 in a contempt of court case.

The court directed Rana Shamim, Ansar Abbasi, the journalist who ran the story, and others to appear before the court on January 7, as the court decided to initiate contempt of court proceedings against them.

During the hearing, Shamim opened his original affidavit — submitted earlier in December, more than a month after it was mentioned in the report published in a local newspaper — on the court’s instructions.

Justice Minallah asked Shamim if the document was the former judge’s affidavit and whether he had sealed it himself to which Shamim responded in the affirmative.

Contempt of court case: IHC to open sealed envelope during next hearing

Justice Minallah also directed that copies of the affidavit be provided to Attorney General Khalid Jawed Khan.

In the “leaked” affidavit, on which the journalist’s report was based, Shamim allegedly stated that the then chief justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, during his visit to GB, had made a call to an IHC judge and asked him to ensure that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were not released on bail before July 25, 2018 general elections. The affidavit was published as part of an investigative report by the local newspaper on November 15.

During Tuesday hearing, the IHC chief justice observed that Shamim’s written response submitted to the court had “laid the entire blame” on journalist Ansar Abbasi, recalling that the former jurist had also maintained that he had not shared the affidavit with anyone.

He added that in similar circumstances, courts in London asked journalists to disclose their sources but the IHC would not do so.

“The judge [mentioned in] the affidavit was on leave at the time. Attempts were also made to cast doubt on the two judges on the bench,” Justice Minallah said.

Attorney general of Pakistan noted that the font of the affidavit appeared to be Calibri — the same font used in key documents submitted by PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz to a joint investigation team set up to probe the Panama Papers leak which were found to be “faked”.

The IHC chief justice asked Shamim’s counsel, Lateef Afridi, why the court should not go ahead with framing charges given the situation.

Afridi responded that he had not prepared to argue on the framing of charges but Shamim had accepted that the affidavit belonged to him.

The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) vice chairman, Amjad Ali Shah, who is amicus curiae in the case, said those named in the affidavit should submit their responses so proceedings in the case could move forward.

“Is the PBC saying that prima facie, what is written in the affidavit is correct? If the PBC is saying that what is written in the affidavit is correct, it would amount to suspicion of all judges of this court,” Justice Minallah said.

He added the PBC would have to take a “very clear stand” on the matter.

Justice Minallah said the matter had “nothing to do” with the former chief justice of Pakistan. “Go and do what you want to do with Mian Saqib Nisar,” he remarked.

He recalled that proceedings had started because of an attempt to cast suspicion on judges of the high court. “This perception is being created which everyone has started believing as true,” Justice Minallah said.

“Where was that perception when bail was granted two weeks later by this same court?” he questioned.

The attorney general said that the concerned document was very important in a contempt of court case. Afridi responded that Shamim had said the affidavit was a “private document” and was written on his wife’s request.

“By now, even Rana Shamim must have come to know how sensitive this issue is,” Justice Minallah remarked.

“Contempt of court cases were initiated against Firdous Ashiq Awan in [the IHC] and Imran Khan in the Supreme Court. What happened in those cases? Such cases are initiated and the court has to show mercy,” Afridi responded.

“Rana Shamim did not leak his affidavit to the press or give it to anyone. He also asked Ansar Abbasi where he had received it,” the ex-judge’s counsel argued.

The lawyer further said that Abbasi had declined to reveal his source. “Ansar Abbasi has some privileges as a journalist,” he added.

Justice Minallah then asked whether Shamim had taken any action on the breach of his privacy to which the counsel responded that no legal action could be taken due to the ongoing contempt of court case.

The judge then asked Afridi to inform who the beneficiaries of the affidavit were to which the counsel replied that he did not know nor was it his job.

Afridi said Shamim “did not know about the affidavit’s consequences when he wrote it”.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021