Pakistani Supreme Court annuls anti-corruption body chief's appointment

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday declared the appointment of the chief of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) as void, court officials said. A five-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jilani ruled that Fasih Bokhari's appointment to the position of chairman of NAB was unconstitutional and unlawful, adding that it was in violation with Section 6 of the NAB Ordinance. The court in its short order stopped Bukhari from working as NAB chairman. Former leader of the opposition Chaudhry Nisar petitioned the apex court on October 22, 2011, seeking a declaration against the appointment as void ab initio (illegal from the beginning), saying it was not made by President Asif Ali Zardari in consultation with the leader of the house (prime minister), leader of the opposition or the chief justice. Zardari appointed Bukhari as NAB chairman on October 16, 2011. Bukhari was also charged earlier in a contempt of court case with writing a strongly worded letter to the president, in which he said that the apex court proceedings were putting undue pressure on NAB investigators by trying to influence investigations in different corruption cases. During the hearing Bukhari's lawyer, Advocate Sardar Latif Khosa, said the petition was filed only to malign Zardari. Latif Khosa said after the constitutional amendment, there had been no role of the chief justice in the appointment of chairman NAB. Responding to a question, he said if there was any conflict of interest in the appointment, the matter could be referred to a senate committee for a final decision. The petition had insisted that Zardari was not qualified to exercise power or perform function to appoint NAB chairman when he himself was accused in more than a dozen cases of alleged corruption. It had moreover stressed that in the appointment of NAB chairman, it was imperative to consult the chief justice to ensure the neutrality and independence of the National Accountability Bureau.