ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) will hear the federal government’s request for an extension in the tenure of the committee investigating the Faizabad sit-in next week.
Initially expected to submit its report in the third week of January, the committee sought an additional month to complete its probe into the 2017 Faizabad Interchange sit-in in Islamabad.
Formally requesting the extension, the federal government aims to identify those involved in planning, financing, and supporting the sit-in. A three-member bench of the Supreme Court will consider the plea in the coming week. The committee has already summoned key figures such as former ISI director-general Lt. General (retired) Faiz Hameed, former prime ministers Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, and Shehbaz Sharif.
On January 5, Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed, in response to the inquiry commission, submitted a written response. The Faizabad commission was established by the federal government, led by retired Inspector General Akhtar Ali Shah, following the Supreme Court’s rejection of the Fact-Finding Committee report. Constituted under the Pakistan Commission of Inquiry Act, 2017, the commission includes Syed Akhtar Ali Shah, Tahir Alam Khan, and Khushal Khan.
The Faizabad sit-in, organized by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) on November 8, 2017, protested amendments in the Election Bill 2017. The demonstrators called for the resignation of Minister for Law and Justice Zahid Hamid. The subsequent fallout led to the dismissal of Zahid Hamid by the then PML-N government. The Supreme Court took suo motu notice of the sit-in on November 21, 2017.
In its February 6, 2019 verdict, a division bench led by Justice Qazi Faez Isa criticized the role of intelligence agencies in the saga. Chief Justice Isa, after assuming office in September, revisited the case and on November 1, rejected the fact-finding committee, instructing the government to form a commission of inquiry to uncover the mastermind behind the sit-in.
