Hamid Mir called out for ‘half-baked’ story against Al-Qadir Trust case judge

Journalist Imran Waseem has called out prominent journalist Hamid Mir for sharing a “half-baked” story and misrepresenting facts regarding Nasir Javed Rana, the judge who sentenced former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in the Al-Qadir Trust case Friday.

With Khan and his wife being sentenced to 14 and seven years in prison, respectively, in the Al-Qadir Trust case, a series on posts on social media targeted the accountability judge who delivered the verdict. The posts questioned Judge Rana’s credibility on the basis of a 2004 suo motu ruling that had restrained him from exervising his powers as a magistrate.

“This is a Supreme Court verdict against Judge Nasir Javed Rana in 2004. Chief Justice of Pakistan took a Suo Motu action against civil judge Nasir Javed Rana and his judicial powers were withdrawn. He was declared unfit for judicial service but the same judge was hired again [sic],” Mir wrote while sharing said documents on his X account.

Journalist Imran Waseem, however, was quick to react to the post, declaring it “half-baked” truth. “Half-truths are not the truth… they create the impression of lies. If you want to write, then write the whole truth,” he said while quoting Mir’s post.

“Senior journalist Hamid Mir has shared half/incomplete information in this tweet. Undoubtedly, the Supreme Court passed observations on the matter concerning Judge Nasir Javed Rana, but the case was referred to the Lahore High Court for further inquiry. After conducting the inquiry, the Lahore High Court reinstated Nasir Javed Rana to his position,” he clarified.

It may be noted that the case in question pertained to the Supreme Court on October 26, 2004, withdrawing Rana’s judicial powers as a magistrate for granting a ten-day remand of a senior lawyer in violation of the law. The apex court had also directed the Lahore High Court (LHC) to take further action.

“The magistrate has a strong tendency for committing any mischief and is absolutely unfit for judicial service,” then chief justice of Pakistan (CJP), Justice Nazim Hussain Siddiqui, had said in a 14-page judgment on the suo motu notice against the illegal detention of lawyer Habib Wahabul Khairi.

Later, then LHC chief justice Iftikhar Hussain Chaudhry, after an inquiry, had acquitted Rana of the charges and reinstated him as a magistrate.

On Friday, Rana delivered the much-delayed verdict in the Al-Qadir Trust case also known as the £190 million case. The verdict was announced at a makeshift courtroom in Adiala Jail and pertained to the misappropriation of funds by former PM Khan in collusion with property tycoon Malik Riaz.

In the verdict, Khan was also slapped with a fine of Rs1 million whereas his wife was fined Rs500,000. The former first lady was also taken into custody after months of bail.