ISPR warns of severe consequences concerning Prime Minister’s statement

In a deepening civil-military divide, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has taken notice of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s interview to a Chinese newspaper in which he said that the army chief and DG ISI gave statements to the Supreme Court without the government’s approval.

Allegations leveled by Gilani against Kayani & Pasha serious: ISPR

The Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) has recently posted a statement on its official website that called the comments made by the Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raze Gilani about the Chief of Army Staff General (COAS) Ashfaq Pervez Kayani

as well as the Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Ahmed Shuja Pasha as very serious.

The Prime Minister of Pakistan had given an interview to a Chinese online newspaper by the name of

The People’s Daily Online and had referred to the COAS as well as the DGISI of Pakistan. This was done during the time Kayani was on an official visit to China.

According to the ISPR website, the comments of the Prime Minister of Pakistan can have“very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.”

The website also added the following statements: “The Honourable Prime Minister inter alia termed the responses given by COAS and DG ISI in the alleged Memo Case to the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan as unconstitutional and illegal.”

The statement given by the Prime Minister of Pakistan was in response to the developments made in the memo gate case that is ongoing in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The case is investigating the former Pakistani ambassador to the United States, Hussain Haqqani, against whom there are allegations that he had a hand in delivering the message to the US to rein in the military of Pakistan on the request of the President of the country, Asif Ali Zardari. The allegation was made by an American based Pakistani

businessman according to whom the memo requesting the help of the US to deal with the military of Pakistan was asked to be forwarded by Haqqani.

Since the time that the memo gate issue came to light, there has been a deepening divide between the military of the country and the civil government. According to the ISPR statement that is present on the website, the Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raza

Gilani has in fact held both the COAS as well as the DGISI responsible for being in the direct violation of the country. As a result, the matter will not be taken lightly.

According to the statement issued by ISPR, APP had issued a statement on 9th of January 2012 giving details of the interview given by the Honourable Prime Minister of Pakistan to The People’s Daily Online of China when the COAS was also on an official visit to China. The Honourable Prime Minister inter alia termed the responses given by COAS and DG ISI in the alleged Memo Case to the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan as unconstitutional and illegal. This part of the statement has been quoted and widely debated in the media.

The statement said that there can be no allegation more serious than what the Honourable Prime Minister has leveled against COAS and DG ISI and has unfortunately charged the officers for violation of the Constitution of the Country. This has very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the Country. The statement does not take into account following important facts:-

COAS and DG ISI were cited as Respondents in the Petitions as such and after hearing the parties the Honourable Supreme Court served notices directly to the Respondents. This was not objected to by the learned Attorney General of Pakistan.

The responses by the respondents were sent to the Ministry of Defence for onward submission to the Honourable Supreme Court, through Attorney General (Law Ministry).

A letter was also dispatched to the Attorney General of Pakistan and the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan informing that the replies have been submitted to the Ministry of Defence.

It is emphasized that copies of the statements of the two Respondents were not forwarded directly to the Supreme Court.

Responsibility for moving summaries and obtaining approvals of Competent Authority thereafter lay with the relevant ministries and not with the Respondents.

It is also highlighted that after a meeting between the Honourable Prime Minister and the COAS, the Honourable Prime Minister had publicly stated through a press release of 16th December 2011 that the replies submitted were “ in response to the notice of the Court through proper channel and in accordance with the rules of business.” No objections were raised before and thereafter, on the legality and constitutional status of the replies, at any time, during the last more than three weeks of hearing of the case by the Honourable Supreme Court.It is also categorically stated that COAS and DG ISI in their response to the Honourable Supreme Court were obliged to state facts as known to them, on the Memo Issue. The issue of jurisdiction and maintainability of the Petitions was between the Honourable Supreme Court and the Federation.

Any expectation that COAS will not state the facts is neither constitutional nor legal. Allegiance to State and the Constitution is and will always remain prime consideration for the Respondent, who in this case has followed the book.