IN THE SUPREME COURT OF PAKISTAN 
 
   (Original Jurisdiction) 
 
 
Present: 
 
Mr. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, HCJ  
Mr. Justice Khilji Arif Hussain 
Mr. Justice Tariq Parvez  
 
 
Human Rights Case No.19 of 1996 
[APPLICATION 
BY 
AIR 
MARSHAL 
(R) 
MUHAMMAD ASGHAR KHAN] 
 
Air Marshal (R) Muhammad Asghar Khan  
 
Petitioner 
 
VERSUS 
1. 
Gen(R) Mirza Aslam Baig,  
Ex-Chief of Army Staff;  
 
 
 
 
 
2. 
Lt. Gen(R) Asad Durrani, Ex-DG, ISI; and 
 
3. 
Younas Habib,  
 
Ex-Chief Mehran Bank Limited. 
 
 
Respondents   
 
For the Petitioner  
: 
Mr. Salman Akram Raja, ASC a/w  
 
 
 
 
 
Petitioner  
 
For Respondent No.1 
: 
Mr. M. Akram Sheikh, Sr.ASC a/w  
 
 
 
 
 
Respondent No.1 
 
For Respondent No. 2 : 
In person.  
 
For Respondent No.3 
: 
In person.  
 
For Defence Ministry  : 
Raja Abdul Ghafoor, AOR 
 
 
 
 
 
Comdr. M. Hussain Shahbaz,  
 
 
 
 
 
Director (Legal) 
 
For Applicant 
 
: 
Sheikh Khizar Hayat, Sr.ASC 
(in CMA.918/97) 
 
Date of Hearing  
: 
08.03.2012 
 
ORDER 
 
 
 
In obedience to order dated 29.02.2012, the office has 
placed on record a sealed envelop under the cover “TOP 
SECRETE”  “REPORT OF THE COMMISSION TO REVIEW 
THE 
WORKING 
OF 
SECURITY 
& 
INTELLIGENCE 
Human Rights Case No.19 of 1996 
 
2 
AGENCIES”. The envelop has been opened in Court, which 
contains four folders Part-II (Report of the Commission to Review 
the Working of Security & Intelligence Agencies (MARCH – 
1989); Part-III (Correspondence); again Part-II (photocopy of the 
same report of the Commission (March-1989); and again Part-III 
(Correspondence).  
 
2. 
 
A perusal of the same indicates that the Report of the 
Commission to Review the Working of Security & Intelligence 
Agencies has not been filed. However, Comdr. Muhammad 
Hussain Shahbaz, Director (Legal), representing Ministry of 
Defence, is allowed to go through these documents in the office of 
Registrar of this Court, who shall facilitate him in this behalf. He 
is directed to file the requisite reports pertaining to the year 1990 
as well as up-to-date reports on the Working of Security & 
Intelligence Agencies. In the interest of nation, these documents 
shall be kept CONFIDENTIAL.  
 
3. 
 
The envelop produced before us has been given to Mr. 
Rafaqat Hussain, CA/Branch Incharge, Civil-II, who shall 
handover the same to Registrar of this Court, who shall put them 
under seal.     
 
4. 
 
Another envelop has been produced, which contains 
the following items:- 
“Item No.1 
 
1. 
2 Audio Cassettes relating to HRC.19/1996 containing 
detail, as under:-  
 
 
Cassette No.1: Dated 20.11.1997 timings 10.30 to  
 
 
11.00 a.m. 
 
Human Rights Case No.19 of 1996 
 
3 
Cassette No.2: Dated 25.11.1997 timing, 10 am to 11 
am and 11.30 to 1.00 pm. (side A) 
dated 26.11.1997 timings 11:45 am to 
1:15 pm (side B) 
 
Item No.2 
 
 
File No.1:  
Consisting 3 pages in original  
 
 
Page No.1: 
 
(Note dated 28.5.1999 of the then Additional 
Registrar with regard to obtaining the orders of HJ (1) 
whether Lt. General ® Nasirullah Babar and Lt. 
General ® Asad Durrani may be asked to read their 
statements and sign them in the presence of an officer 
of this Court).  
 
Page No.2 
Note dated 1.6.1999 regarding submission of un-
signed statements/cross-examination of Maj. ® Nasir 
Ullah Babar and Lt. General Asad Durrani to the 
then HJ(1) 
 
Page No.3 
Order dated 2.6.1999 of Justice Said-uz-Zaman 
Siddiqui  
 
File No.2 in original 
 
Srl.
Nos. 
Detail 
(All in original) 
Pages 
1 
Cross examination of Maj. Gen.(R) Nasir 
Ullah Babar by Genl. Mirza Aslam Baig 
1-3 
2 
Explanation of Gen Babar with regard to his 
cross examination  
4 
3 
Cross examination of Maj. Gen. (R) Nasir 
Ullah Babar by Habib-ul-Wahab-ul-Khairi 
(in Urdu) 
5-9 
4 
Cross examination of Maj. Gen. (R) Nasir 
Ullah Babar by Mr. Muhammad Akram 
Sheikh.  
10-21 
5 
Cross examination of Lt. Gen.(R) Asad 
Durrani  
22-25 
6 
Cross examination of Lt. Gen.(R) Asad 
Durrani by Habib-ul-Wahab-ul-Khairi 
26-33 
7 
Cross examination of Lt. Gen.(R) Asad 
Durrani by Maj. Gen.(R) Naseer Ullah 
Babar  
34-35 
 
Item No.3 
 
Copy No.08 of 11 Copies:- 
Folder with regard to the report of the commission to 
review the working of Security and Intelligence 
Agencies (March-1989) submitted by (i). Air Chief 
Marshal Zulfiqar Ali Khan, Chairman, (ii). S.K. 
Mahmud, Secretary Interior, Member, (iii). Mr. 
M.A.K. Chaudhry, Member and (iv) Air Commodore 
Muhammad Yamin, Secretary. (Pages 1-57).  
 
Item No.4 
 
ADO letter No.RC/1/89 dated 27.3.1989 addressed to 
the Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, Prime Minister of 
Pakistan, Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Rawalpindi by 
the Air Chief Marshal, Zulfiqar Ali Khan along with 
its synopsis of the Commissioner’s Report for facility 
of reference. (Pages 1-8)”.   
 
 
5. 
 
The office has also made efforts to find out as to 
whether examination-in-chief of Gen.(R) Naseer Ullah Khan 
Human Rights Case No.19 of 1996 
 
4 
Babar and Lt. Gen.(R) Asad Durrani was recorded; according to 
the report, no such document is available on record. However, 
Mr. Salman Akram Raja, learned ASC, appearing for the 
petitioner, states that they were subjected to cross-examination 
on the affidavits, which have already been filed. As these 
proceedings were drawn in camera, therefore, the same be sealed 
and are handed over to Mr. Rafaqat Hussain for depositing the 
same with the Registrar. As regards proceedings drawn by the 
office of Registrar to locate these documents, the same are also 
made part of the record and are ordered to be deposited with the 
Registrar.  
 
6. 
 
In pursuance of order dated 29.02.2012, Mr. Younas 
Habib, Ex-Chief of Ex-Mehran Bank Limited, has appeared and 
stated that earlier at the time when the proceedings were 
conducted in this case no statement was filed by him. It seems 
that might be he had filed or given statement before the 
investigating agencies under Section 161, Cr.PC in connection 
with some criminal cases against him, as reference of the same is 
available at page 220 of the file. However, today he has placed on 
record a handwritten statement/affidavit, which was not sworn 
on oath, although such statement or affidavit is required to be 
sworn under Supreme Court Rules, 1980. It seems that as he is a 
sick person and attending the Court on Wheelchair, therefore, we 
accept the affidavit and direct the office to manage attestation of 
the same, which has been done.  
 
Human Rights Case No.19 of 1996 
 
5 
7. 
 
Initially, Mr. Younas Habib claimed that the affidavit 
filed by him be considered as a classified document. However, on 
having gone through the same we are of the opinion that it does 
not fall within the category of the documents, in respect whereof 
privilege could be claimed, thus the same is declared not to be the 
classified one. He has read out the contents of the affidavit in 
Court and also handed over three copies of the same along with a 
photograph wherein he has been shown to be one of the persons 
along with the then President of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq Khan 
(Late) and uniformed officer of 
Pakistan Army having 
conversation with Mirza Aslam Baig, Ex-Chief of Army Staff. The 
same be also kept on record.  
 
8. 
 
The office is directed to prepare photostat copies of 
the affidavit filed by Mr. Younas Habib and handover the same to 
Mr. Muhammad Akram Sheikh, learned Sr.ASC, Mr. Salman 
Akram Raja, learned ASC; Mr. Asad Durrani and Sheikh Khizar 
Hayat, learned Sr.ASC. They may go through the same and if 
desire or instructed may opt to file their replies to the same by 
tomorrow i.e. 09.03.2012.  
 
 
Re-list on 09.03.2012.  
Chief Justice 
 
 
 
Judge 
 
 
 
Judge 
ISLAMABAD 
08.03.2012 
Zubair