It will not implement the Supreme Court’s verdict ordering the reopening of money laundering and corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.
The government refused to send an official letter to the Swiss court dealing with the case before it was forced to halt proceedings when the Pakistani government granted an amnesty to politicians accused of certain crimes.
Secretary of Law Ministry Masood Chishti, who was given a Friday deadline by the Supreme Court, said on Thursday: “The president enjoys immunity (while in office), therefore the government cannot ask the Swiss court to reopen money laundering and graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.”
The Swiss court had stopped proceedings of money laundering and graft cases against Zardari when former Attorney General Malik Qayyum presented an application stating that former president Pervez Musharraf had issued a National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).
The NRO granted amnesty to politicians accused of certain crimes including money-laundering, embezzlement and corruption.
Qayyum had in the late 90s investigated Zardari and asked the Nawaz Sharif government to initiate cases of corruption and money laundering against Zardari and his wife and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
The ruling said a summary needed to be sent by Friday (tomorrow) to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to re-open the cases against the president. This comes after the attorney general of Pakistan was ordered to ask Gilani to contact Swiss authorities.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, Justice Tariq Pervez and Justice Ghulam Rabbani is hearing the case against the non-implementation of a court decision declaring the NRO unconstitutional.
Cases against Zardari and other leaders and bureaucrats were reopened after the scrapping of the NRO.
On Dec. 16, 2009, the Supreme Court struck down the NRO, declaring it unconstitutional.
