Mansoor given final chance to appear on Feb 9
189 viewsBy jazbablog - Wed Jan 25, 12:19 am
ISLAMABAD: The judicial commission probing the Memo case has given Mansoor Ijaz one final chance and summoned him on February 9.
The Commission also said that if Mansoor Ijaz was dissatisfied with security assurances, the petition may be cancelled, while Mansoor’s statement could only be recorded abroad if both parties agreed.
Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who is heading the commission, said that the commission will not travel abroad to record the statement of Mansoor Ijaz.
The commission said that a letter will be written to the Supreme Court to request that the four-week deadline to finish the probe be extended.
Mansoor Ijaz, who is one of the central characters of the Memo case, has twice denied coming to Pakistan to record his statement before the commission, citing security issues.
Earlier on Tuesday, Interior Minister Rehman Malik had stated that the name of Mansoor Ijaz had not been placed on the Exit Control List and that the Interior Ministry had issued a clarification on the matter. Malik was ordered to appear before the commission to respond to the ‘threatening’ statements he gave regarding Mansoor Ijaz’s visit to Pakistan.
Following the order, Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq had talked to Rehman Malik who said that he will appear before the commission on Tuesday.
“The commission has ordered the Interior Minister to appear before the commission Tuesday and explain his statements about Mansoor’s security,” Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq earlier told reporters.
The minister had warned that the government will place Ijaz name on the Exit Control List, if requested by the parliamentary committee formed to probe the memo.
Justice Qazi Faez Isa, heading the bench, had inquired why Ijaz was not coming to Pakistan. Akram Sheikh, the lawyer of Ijaz Mansoor, had said that his client wanted to bring all proofs to the commission, but the Interior Ministry had threatened to place his name on the Exit Control List (ECL).
