ISLAMABAD – Former ISI director general Faiz Hamid has officially addressed the Faizabad sit-in commission, refuting allegations of plotting against the government.
Despite being summoned three times by the panel investigating the 2017 Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) sit-in, Hamid initially failed to appear. Subsequently, the commission sent him a questionnaire, to which he responded, clarifying that his negotiations with TLP were conducted under the government’s directives.
According to the media reports, the commission called the ex-army officer for January 2 but he did not attend. This marks his third absence from the inquiry commission’s hearings; initially summoned in mid-December and later on December 29, although the first notice failed to reach him.
In response to the Supreme Court’s 2019 Faizabad verdict, the caretaker federal government established the inquiry commission. Following the apex court’s rejection of the government-formed fact-finding committee report, retired IGP Akhtar Ali Shah headed this commission.
Empowered to summon various individuals, including former army chiefs, prime ministers, and chief justices, the commission is mandated to submit its report to the top court by January 22.
Furthermore, the commission summoned PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif on January 3, but he did not appear, requesting the commission to send him a questionnaire. He has since been furnished with a 21-point questionnaire for his response.
Previously, figures such as former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, ex-Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, former PM’s secretary Fawad Hasan Fawad, and other senior officials involved in the incident had appeared before the probe panel.
