ISLAMABAD:
ISLAMABAD: The opposition and the government remained undecided over the ToRs for the proposed judicial commission on Panama Papers as yet another meeting of a bipartisan parliamentary committee ended in a deadlock.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Aitzaz Ahsan told media that there was no development in the eight meeting of the ToRs committee. “We did show flexibility to the extent we could, but the government didn’t try to resolve the matter,” he said.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi told media that there was zero progress in the meeting and deadlock still persisted. The opposition leaders also declined to comment whether the committee would meet again.
The parliamentary committee comprising six members each from the government and the opposition held its first meeting on May 25.
The committee was set up to come up ToRs for the proposed inquiry commission after Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali refused the federal government’s request to form a judicial commission to investigate the Panama leaks, saying it will take years to complete its proceedings with the provided Terms of Reference.
In a written response to a letter by the federal government earlier this month, the chief justice raised a set of objections to the notification from the federal government.
The chief justice pointed out that the formation of a commission under the Pakistan Commission of Inquiry Act, 1956 would only “result in the constitution of a toothless commission, which will serve no useful purpose, except giving bad name to it”.
