Ex-CJP Saqib Nisar Refutes PM Shehbaz’s Accusations

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2023-04-19T13:26:03+05:00 News Desk
Former chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar has refuted claims made by Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and claimed that a leader who swears allegiance to the Constitution cannot get away with lying, reported The News on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, PM Shehbaz harshly slammed Nisar for "sabotaging" development initiatives put forth by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.

The premier was speaking at the Rawalpindi Institute of Urology and Transplantation Hospital's (RIUT) opening ceremony for the Urology Department.

He challenged Saqib Nisar for objecting to hospital spending at the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute, asking, "If Rs. 20 billion were wasted, how did this hospital become the largest center for COVID-19 patients?"

As the cause of the pressure campaign against the hospital, he further accused the former chief judge of "seeking a position for his brother" in the PKLI hospital.

Nisar criticized the premier in a remark that was made after PM Shehbaz attacked him, saying that he shouldn't hold the judiciary responsible for his mistakes.

"The PKLI's construction cost the national exchequer billions, but its operating room was not even operational while I was chief justice. Additionally, a forensic assessment of the inconsistencies in the PKLI is available.

In response to claims that the prime minister sought to appoint his brother to the PKLI, the former chief justice noted that the prime minister should be aware of the facts before making accusations against anyone.

Nisar accused PM Shehbaz of making such accusations only to mislead the country. While already employed by 56 companies, "some officers were receiving millions in salaries," he recalled.

In response to a different claim, Nisar stated that the premier was against holding court on Sunday. The decision to open the court on Sunday is entirely up to the chief justice.

Adding that he had appointed a five-member bench to guard the funds, he claimed that Rs 10 billion had been contributed by individuals to the dam fund.

"The amount deposited was invested by the bench, which increased to Rs17 billion," he added.

The former chief justice went on to say that he intended to complete the dam quickly but chose not to emphasize the challenges that lay ahead.
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