Pakistan's former ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani, has been asked by the Memogate Commission to submit an affidavit about what happened to his two Blackberry phone sets on which the alleged conversations with businessman Mansoor Ijaz took place.
Haqqani has claimed that the conversations were doctored and also that his phones have gone missing. His lawyer, Zahid Bukhari, said a search has been made for the phones but they could not be found. Their pin numbers could also not be ascertained, Bukhari added.
The Memogate Commission, formed on the instructions of the Supreme Court, is hearing a petition submitted by opposition leader Nawaz Sharif in which it was pleaded that the case, if proven true against Haqqani and others, could lead to possible treason charges for conspiring against the army high command.
The other big news on the Memogate front was that Mansoor Ijaz, at the heart of the Memogate scandal, asked the court to give him time till January 25 to come to Pakistan. Ijaz's lawyer Akram Sheikh read out his written statement during the proceedings.
Sheikh said that Ijaz was ready to come to Pakistan but he and his family have been receiving threats since the last proceeding of the case. Shaikh also told the court that Ijaz has applied for a visa at the Pakistani embassy in Switzerland.
{{/usCountry}}Sheikh said that Ijaz was ready to come to Pakistan but he and his family have been receiving threats since the last proceeding of the case. Shaikh also told the court that Ijaz has applied for a visa at the Pakistani embassy in Switzerland.
{{/usCountry}}According to recent reports, legal experts in the country expressed that Ijaz can be charged with 'high-treason' on his return to Pakistan, despite his American nationality. This was refuted by the government.
RIM no to sharing BlackBerry data
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) has rejected Pakistan s request for details of communications between former envoy Husain Haqqani and Mansoor Ijaz related to the memo scandal.
Attorney General Anwar-ul-Haq informed a SC-appointed judicial commission that Canada-based RIM had refused to provide data of the communications between Ijaz and Haqqani.