JC MUST BE EMPOWERED TO PROBE ‘POWERFUL ELEMENTS’ BEHIND AUDIO LEAKS: IMRAN

REACTING to a three-member judicial commission constituted by the “imported government” to probe audio leaks, Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTI) Imran Khan said that the commission must be empowered to investigate ‘powerful and unknown’ elements who tap and record telephone conversations of citizens including high public functionaries.

In a statement on Saturday, PTI Chairman said that the federal government has formed an Inquiry Commission under Section 3 of the Commissions of

Inquiry Act, 2017 to investigate the issue of Audio Leaks.

However, he said that the Terms of Reference (Tors) formed by the federal government suffer from a deliberate omission.

Imran Khan went on to say that they failed to take into account the issue that who is behind unlawful and unconstitutional surveillance of PM office and sitting judges of the Supreme Court.

“The Commission should be empowered to investigate who are these powerful and unknown elements who tap and record telephone conversations of citizens including high public functionaries,” he added.

PTI Chairman stated that this was serious breach of privacy guaranteed under Article 14 of the Constitution.

“Not only those who illegally retrieve data through unlawful phone tapping and surveillance should be held accountable but those who through fabrication and tampering of different phone calls leak them on social media also need to be held accountable” he maintained.

Imran Khan said that democracies governed by the rule of law propose that the state should not arbitrarily intrude into certain aspects of life.

“Right to privacy and dignity guaranteed under Article 14 are patently infringed whenever the state unlawfully surveils an individual,” he added.

He said that some of the recent leaked calls were made over what was supposed to be a secure phone line in the Prime Minister’s Office.

Nevertheless, he said that they unlawfully were tapped and fabricated/tampered with. Seemingly, the elements behind such audacious tapping operate in a manner outside the command and even knowledge of the PM of Pakistan.

“Who are these actors who are above the law and outside the command of even the prime minister of the country, and who resort to such illegal surveillance with impunity? Such elements need to be held identified by the Commission,” he added.