PAKISTAN'S CHIEF JUSTICE SUSPENDED

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 001124

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/10/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PK
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN'S CHIEF JUSTICE SUSPENDED

REF: ISLAMABAD 637

Classified By: Ambassador Ryan Crocker, Reasons 1.4 (b),(d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: On March 9, President Pervez Musharraf
suspended Pakistan's Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry on various corruption charges.
Chaudhry had developed a reputation for judicial activism
during his short time on the bench and ruled against the
Government of Pakistan in several high-profile cases.
Islamabad's legal and media circles are abuzz with
speculation about what motivated the President, but genuine
facts are scarce. Whether this is a case of high-level
corruption or part of a broader struggle for control of the
judiciary, the hands-on manner in which President Musharraf
went about suspending Chaudhry has seized the attention of
the media. END SUMMARY.

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MUSHARRAF SUSPENDS CHIEF JUSTICE, ACTING CHIEF SWORN IN
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2. (C) Around 11:00 a.m. on March 9, President Pervez
Musharraf summoned Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry
to Army House in Rawalpindi to inform him that the President
was suspending him as Chief Justice "for misconduct, misuse
of authority, and actions prejudicial to the dignity of the
office of the chief justice of Pakistan." Embassy contacts
report that Chaudhry spent over five hours at Army House and
that he refused to resign on the spot. When Chaudhry
attempted to return to his office, security personnel
escorted him home. Media and Embassy contacts have told
PolOffs privately that Chaudhry is under unofficial house
arrest. He served only 21 months of a term that was supposed
to last until 2013.


3. (C) After meeting with Chaudhry, Musharraf appointed
Justice Javed Iqbal as Acting Chief Justice. Iqbal was third
in line for the position -- the second in line, Justice Rana
Bhagwandas, a Hindu approaching retirement, was reportedly in
India on leave. (Comment: It is unclear whether Bhagwandas
will assume the Acting role when he returns to Pakistan.
Bhagwandas is known as an honest judge. If he is skipped in
favor of Iqbal -- who many see as a more malleable justice --
opposition and media groups may call foul. End Comment.)


4. (SBU) Iqbal hastily took the oath of office and brought
the Supreme Judicial Council into session. The Supreme
Judicial Council, which is responsible for hearing complaints
of misconduct against high-level judges, is composed of the
Supreme Court's three senior-most judges and two Chief
Justices from the country's four Provincial High Courts.
(Note: That the Chief Justices from Karachi and Lahore, who
will sit on the Supreme Judicial Council, happened to be in
Islamabad when all of this transpired has only fed conspiracy
theorists' suspicions. End Note.) The Supreme Judicial
Council's first order of business under Iqbal was to call
Chaudhry to a March 13 session to answer the charges against
him. There is precedent for such a move -- Chaudhry is the
fifth judge in Pakistan's history to face this type of
"presidential reference." In the previous four cases, two
judges resigned and the other two were expelled from the high
court.

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AN ACTIVIST JUDGE
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5. (C) Chaudhry had brought a streak of judicial activism to

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the Chief Justice position, making several decisions that
observers believe irritated the government, including:

-- Pressing the government to find and release 41 missing
persons assumed to have "disappeared" at the hands of
intelligence agencies.
-- Blocking the privatization of Pakistan Steel Mills.
-- Canceling the lease of an Islamabad public park to a
private developer.
-- Pursuing cases alleging that the government overcharged
for petroleum products.


6. (SBU) Negative stories about Chaudhry and, more
specifically, his son Arsalan Iftikhar Chaudhry seemed to
increase in recent weeks. Local media reported January 30
that a high court lawyer had lodged a complaint against
Arsalan with the National Accountability Board (NAB) for
corruption and abuse of power (reftel). In mid-February,
pro-government lawyer and television anchor Naeem Bokhari
wrote an open letter to Chief Justice Chaudhry alleging that
Arsalan used his position to secure government jobs and
special treatment.


7. (C) Comment: In this land of conspiracy theories, a new
one has blossomed every 30 seconds since the announcement of
the Chief Justice's suspension. Speculation focuses on why
Musharraf personally intervened to suspend the Chief Justice
rather than seeking other routes, such as impeachment or a
criminal investigation. Until more facts become available,
such speculation should be taken with a healthy helping of
salt. End Comment.

CROCKER