During a court hearing, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) reported its inability to trace the source of audio leaks.
The court was addressing pleas filed by Saqib Nisar’s son and Bushra Bibi, wife of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, concerning leaked audio conversations.
Justice Babar Sattar of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) questioned why the ISI filed its report through the Ministry of Defence, prompting Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan to suggest that the intelligence agency should have submitted the report through the Prime Minister’s Office.
The ISI report indicated that the investigation required assistance from social media platforms.
“Any government agency conducting such recordings is doing so unlawfully,” AGP Mansoor Usman Awan said as he submitted a report on behalf of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Awan emphasized that no intelligence agency, including the ISI, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and Intelligence Bureau (IB), was authorized by the federal government to tap audio conversations.
Presiding over the single-member bench, Justice Babar Sattar remarked that it was now the federal government’s responsibility to decide how they want to proceed with the case. “If the government does not disclose [who is tapping the calls], then we may seek assistance from national and international judicial bodies.”
The FIA needs to review the case first to determine who conducted the call recording. “After court orders, the FIA is sending notices to telecommunication companies,” AGP Awan told the court.
“The FIA needs access to IP addresses. If any government agency is conducting these recordings, it is doing so unlawfully,” he reiterated.
The court was informed by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) lawyer that TV channels were prohibited from broadcasting private audio leaks.
Addressing senior lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan during the hearing, Justice Sattar said: “There is a balance between freedom of information and privacy. How should this case be moved forward?”
Aitzaz suggested that self-regulation should be in place, as the Constitution is not being followed here. “The Constitution has not been implemented in 90 days, despite the election announcement.”
The court instructed the AGP to check if there was any news that the Intelligence Bureau (IB) was given the authority to record priviate conversations. To which he said he would check and report back.
The court directed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) , FIA, and other parties to re-file their responses for the next hearing.
The court directed the Attorney General to investigate whether the Intelligence Bureau (IB) had the authority to record calls, and the AGP committed to providing the court with the necessary information.
Additionally, the IHC instructed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to submit a detailed report at the next hearing.
If the government failed to provide the required information, the court expressed its intention to appoint national and international amici curiae for the investigation.
It was also decided that senior journalists would be appointed as amici curiae to provide insights into the matter related to the code of conduct for TV channels.
