The Supreme Court on Thursday again sought a report on the formation of the Inter Services Intelligence's (ISI) political cell and directed the federal defence and interior secretaries to submit their responses in a petition filed by Tehrik-i-Istiqlal chief Air Martial Asghar Khan (Retd) regarding distribution of money among politicians by the ISI.
A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, heard the 1996 petition filed by Asghar Khan, who accused the ISI of financing politicians in the 1990 elections by dishing out Rs 140 million to create the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) and prevent Benazir Bhutto's PPP from winning polls. The petition was based on an affidavit filed by a former ISI chief, Lieutenant General Asad Durrani (Retd).
During the hearing, Attorney-General Irfan Qadir informed the bench that the notification enabling the formation of the ISI's political was not available. Khan's counsel Salman Akram Raja failed to appear for the hearing. However, Raja's Advocate-on-Record informed the court he could not appear before the bench on account of illness, and requested the court to adjourn the hearing.
In response, the Chief Justice remarked that the case was significant and its hearings were crucial. However, due to the counsel's absence on account of ill health, the hearing was being adjourned. The court, again, directed the authorities concerned to submit a report on the establishment of the ISI's political cell. The hearing was subsequently adjourned till October 3.