Daily Times

The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the interior secretary to take steps to bring back former finance minister Ishaq Dar to the country on an urgent basis.

“Is Dar present today?” Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar asked the interior secretary during hearing of a suo motu case related to former Pakistan Television (PTV) chairman Attaullah Haq Qasmi’s appointment as managing director (MD) as well as the amount of salary and perks he received both as chairman and MD of the state-run entity.

When informed about Dar’s failure to appear once again despite being given a last chance during the last hearing on Monday, the chief justice ordered the interior secretary to bring back the former finance minister and also directed the relevant authorities to assist him in this regard. “If any authority refuses to assist the interior secretary, we will conduct an inquiry against it,” the top judge remarked.

The chief justice asked the interior secretary to inform the court how Dar could be brought back. “What steps can be taken if someone does not appear despite being summoned by the court?” he asked. “An accountability court has already declared Dar an absconder,” he upheld.

In response, the interior secretary informed the bench that a passport can be revoked through several ways. “The passport is cancelled after issuing a show-cause notice,” the interior secretary explained, adding that former president Pervez Musharraf’s passport and national identity card have been cancelled. To this, the chief justice remarked, “If we cancel the passport, then he [Dar] will have the excuse that he cannot travel back.” Justice Ijazul Ahsan asked, “Can Interpol be asked to bring him back? There has to be a mechanism to bring back people to the country.” The chief justice questioned, “Three months ago, a NAB court declared Dar absconder but what did the government do? The then-prime minister was seen meeting Dar [in London] – is this rule of law?” “Can red warrants be issued against Dar?” he asked.During the hearing, the chief justice remarked that they had said time and again that Dar should return so that the matter could reach clarity, “but Dar’s back pain is never ending.”

Published in Daily Times, July 13^th 2018.