The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has invalidated a miscellaneous plea from the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), levying a fine and signaling potential action against the FIA Director General for contempt of court.
During a hearing on two similar pleas regarding audio leaks, Justice Babar Sattar presided over the cases of Bushra Bibi and Najam Al Saqib, son of a former chief justice.
The court also addressed miscellaneous pleas from the FIA, Intelligence Bureau (IB), Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), and Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).
The court fined the FIA Rs500,000 for filing the plea, with Justice Babar indicating that contempt proceedings could be initiated against the FIA Director General, questioning the approval for the IB’s miscellaneous application.
The court summoned the IB’s Joint Director General, with the Additional Attorney General stating that the approval was given by Joint Director General Tariq Mehmood.
Justice Babar ordered Tariq Mehmood to appear in court for the next hearing and stated the need to prioritize the hearing of these miscellaneous applications to determine the authority behind them.
The Attorney General, Usman Mansoor, clarified that the IB, FIA, and PTA had filed the pleas, prompting Justice Babar to insist on hearing the pleas and then delivering a verdict.
He questioned the authority behind filing these pleas, to which the Additional Attorney General responded that the FIA Director General had authorized the Assistant Director.
The court scrutinized the application’s objectionable parts, particularly the FIA’s plea to transfer the case to another court, as mentioned by the Additional Attorney General.
