Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial Friday said one should not be influenced by the opinion of anyone outside the system over the appointment of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman. During a hearing on the suo motu notice on the “apprehension of persons in authority undermining the criminal justice system”, CJP Bandial advised the Attorney-General of Pakistan (AGP) Ashtar Ausaf to carefully consider the appointment of the NAB chairman.
The CJP advised the AGP that the NAB chief should be a competent and trustworthy person, and therefore, his appointment should be made with “careful consideration”.
The chief justice stated that the NAB should not tolerate pressure to bring a case without merit. “If NAB is under pressure, write to us. That does not imply that you must pick and drop any case you want,” he said. The CJP said there was a high-profile drug case which made headlines and when the investigating officer was asked about it, he had commented that it was a bogus case. The court subsequently deferred the suo moto hearing until June 14.
