After Faiz Hameed’s conviction, PMLN leader Nasir Butt calls for Gen Bajwa’s accountability
LAHORE: Following the conviction of former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Nasir Mehmood Butt on Friday called for accountability of former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa, urging that his name be placed on the Exit Control List (ECL).
Senator Butt said the military had set a “historic precedent” by holding Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed accountable through a court martial, adding that similar action should eventually be taken against Gen (retd) Bajwa. His remarks came a day after the military court sentenced Faiz Hameed to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment on charges including political interference, violation of the Official Secrets Act, misuse of authority, and causing wrongful loss.
Butt stated that Faiz Hameed “went beyond limits” and continued political interference even after retirement, asserting that the institution acted correctly by initiating legal proceedings against him. He added that accountability must be uniform and not selective if democratic stability is to be ensured in the country.
The PML-N leader also questioned the role of former chief justices Saqib Nisar and Asif Saeed Khosa, as well as Supreme Court judge Justice Ijazul Ahsan, alleging that they played a controversial role in verdicts that led to the disqualification and conviction of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. He said that either the Supreme Court or the government should initiate accountability proceedings against them as well.
Senator Butt demanded that the names of all individuals allegedly involved in what he described as the “toppling of Nawaz Sharif’s government,” including Gen (retd) Bajwa and the three judges, be placed on the ECL. He said that if true accountability was enforced, no individual or institution would dare to undermine an elected government in the future.
He further stated that those who, in his view, conspired against Nawaz Sharif should publicly apologise to the former prime minister. Responding to a question regarding the PML-N’s past decision to support an extension for Gen (retd) Bajwa, Butt said only Nawaz Sharif could explain the circumstances and decisions taken at that time.
Addressing another query, the PML-N senator clarified that, in his personal opinion, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) should not be banned, stressing that political issues should be resolved through democratic and constitutional means.
