Pak Army asks SC to take action after judge blames ISI for interference

The Pakistan Army today asked the Supreme Court to take action, a day after a high court judge accused the country's powerful ISI spy agency of meddling in the affairs of the judiciary and pressuring the chief justice and other judges to get favourable verdicts.

Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui of the Islamabad High Court had alleged that the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was manipulating judicial proceedings in several cases, including that of ousted premier Nawaz Sharif.

"Their (ISI) personnel get benches formed at their will," Siddiqui had alleged.

Army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor in a statement said that an honourable judge had leveled serious allegations against state institutions, including judiciary and the premier intelligence agency.

In order to safeguard the sanctity and credibility of the state institutions, honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan has been requested to initiate appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations and take actions accordingly," he said in the statement.

Earlier Chief Justice Saqib Nisar also took serious notice of Siddiqui's remarks.

The top judge also ordered the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to provide the complete record of the speech.

Siddiqui also claimed that he was approached by the ISI with an offer to make him the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court.