Arsalan Iftikhar the son of Former Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry is once again in the news due to his controversial appointment as Vice-Chairman of Baluchistan Investment Board. The opposition parties in Baluchistan has not only opposed the appointment of Arsalan but also admonished the government to avoid what they called a political bribe. Chief Minister of Baluchistan however has defended his decision by saying that Iftikhar Junior will attract foreign and local investment in the mineral sector including Reko Diq gold & copper mines project.
Ironically, Mr. Arsalan has been hired for a project which government of Baluchistan has already closed declaring it unrealistic. Public Sector Development Programme obstructed its funds for the project during the last fiscal year. The previous government of Baluchistan under Nawab Raisani on persuasion of renowned scientist Dr Samar Mubarakmand originally initiated this project, called H-4. A judicial bench headed by then chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chudhary hunched the project by declaring it a contravention of Pakistan’s laws. Initially, the current provincial government, not only deserted the project but also detached Dr Samar Mubarakmand and his team.
Arsalan has remained midpoint of various controversies in the past. The most meritorious son of the right honourable Mr. Justice Chaudhary said to secure grade C in his higher secondary education and hence he could not secure a place in medical college on open merit. However he was admitted to medical college on the reserve quota seat. Due to academic vigour and zeal he completed the degree of medicine in 7 years rather completing it in 5 years like other fellow students. He then tried the CSS examination but remained unsuccessful by reportedly achieving 16/100 marks in English examination. He then joined the health department of Baluchistan as medical doctor on house job. Those days the salary of internee medical doctors was just around 12000 rupees but he was reportedly in a possession of BMW 7-Series car.
Justice Chudhary wanted the fulfilment of his son’s fantasies of joining the civil services. He allegedly, pressurised the authorities in 2005 to send Arsalan on deputation from medical hospital as a doctor to Federal Investigation Agency as an Assistant Director by bulldozing all Public service commission rules. This was followed by his induction in Police Service of Pakistan bypassing Federal Public Service commission. In 2007, the then President of Pakistan while sacking Mr Justice Chudhary used the case of Arsalan Iftikhar as a precedent of misconduct.
In June 2012, the print and electronic media of Pakistan reported the millions of rupees investment by real estate tycoon, Riaz Malik in the ‘mysterious business’ of Iftikhar Junior. This occurred when the various cases of business tycoon, were being heard by none other than Mr. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Mr. Justice Chaudhry took a suo moto notice of the news items appearing in the print and electronic media regarding his son tomfooleries and instituted a three member bench of Judges headed by him. During the proceedings of the court, the then Attorney General, Mr. Irfan Qadir, repeatedly asked Mr. Justice Chaudhry not to sit on the bench as the matter involved his son and that this would be a serious violation of Clause IV of the Code of Conduct. But Mr. Justice Chaudhry, paid no attention to these reasonable requests and continued presiding over the Judicial bench. Finally, the famous host of Geo News Mr. Kamran Khan, spilled the beans and outlined the delinquencies of Arsalan Iftikhar upon which Mr. Justice Chaudhry had to disassociate himself from the bench. However, while heading the bench Justice Chudhary remarked that he had absolutely no knowledge about the business of his son. The remarks attracted a big mirth nationally.
National Accountability Bureau (NAB) along with Federal Investigation Agency and Islamabad Police started the investigation against Arsalan Iftikhar. He approached the said bench which surprisingly not only accepted his application but strangely stayed the investigations/proceedings carried out by NAB. The Judicial bench then proceeded to constitute a single person Dr. Shoaib Suddle commission to probe the matter. When Dr. Suddle filed an interim report alleging that Arslan Iftikhar is involved in tax evasion case, the bench hastily vide its order of 6.12.2012 remarking that Article 184 (3) of the Constitution is not attracted to the case and finally disposed of the case. Many Jurists opines that ironically two member bench consisting of Mr. Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja & Mr. Justice Khilji Arif went out of its way to favour the son of Mr. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.
The recent controversial appointment of Mr. Arsalan is yet another chapter of history of nepotism in the country. This is something which Quaid-i-Azam had hinted in his very first speech in the constituent Assembly in the following words, ‘One of the biggest curses from which we are suffering…. is bribery and corruption that really is a poison. The evils of nepotism and jobbery must be crushed relentlessly’.
