Pak Supreme Court asks Defence Ministry to produce memo on ISI political cell formation

Islamabad, June 23 (ANI): Pakistan's Supreme Court has asked the Defence Ministry to submit the notification under which the notorious political cell of the country's spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was created in 1975.

The three-member bench of the apex court comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Jawwad S. Khwaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain was hearing the 1996 petition of Tehriq-i-Istiqlal's chief Asghar Khan.

The petition talks about allegations of the ISI's financing of politicians in the 1990 election to prevent the victory of the Pakistan People's Party.

According to The Dawn, Chaudhry said that if admissible evidence was produced, then the court would send notices to politicians guilty of receiving funds from the ISI.

Attroney General Irfan Qadir told the court that the notification under which the ISI political cell was formed could not be found.

"How is it possible that a notification was issued and the defence ministry does not have a copy of it?" remarked the Chief Justice.

According to the paper, the Chief Justice ordered the defence ministry to produce the missing notification in court, also directing the attorney general to facilitate the ministry in doing so. (ANI)