Controversy: Pleading The Case For Bhutto
Ahmad, through his program, Jawabdeh has questioned several key power players of the Coup d'état of (see Operation Fair Play) staged by General Zia-ul-Haq and the subsequent hanging of the then elected Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
In these interviews, some of these people, closely worked with General Zia-ul-Haq, spilled the beans about General Zia's real political intentions. In his programme, former Justice Naseem Hassan Shah, who was a member of the bench of Pakistan Supreme Court which upheld Bhutto's death sentence, admitted that he should have voted against the hanging and felt bad for not doing so. Justice Shah also admitted that there was not enough evidence to put Bhutto on death row. It was the political pressure by General Zia-ul-Haq that manipulated the decision. Those who voted against the decision, such as Justice Fakh-ruddin Abrahim and Justice Dourab Framroze Patel, General Zia-ul-Haq insulted them, and forcefully retired them from their services.
Ahmad has done at least 40 interviews which even though very relevant from an historical point but are seen by many as an attempt to absolve Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Due to the special attached to Bhutto, some analysts argue, undue attention paid, and thorough probing done by Ahmad, the certain lost period of Pakistan's history from 1977 to 1988. Due to his still continuous support to Bhutto, Ahmad has been labeled as a Bhutto loyalist, or a Bhuttoist.
He is said to have over-glorified Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and has been accused of trying to resurrect Bhutto by some senior politicians. The opponents also point out that Ahmad still maintains close relations with the Pakistan People Party, especially with the original members of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's cabinet.
His Interview of Naseem Hassan Shah led to the PPP to make the decision to file for the reopening of the case of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The interview also served as the basis of a lawsuit against Justice Naseem Hassan Shah in which the claimant claimed that after Justice Naseem Hassan Shah's admission in the interview that the decision to hang "Bhutto Sahib" had been forced upon them by Zia-ul-Haq.
Read more about this topic: Iftikhar Ahmad
Famous quotes containing the words pleading, case and/or bhutto:
“We have been here over forty years, a longer period than the children of Israel wandered through the wilderness, coming to this Capitol pleading for this recognition of the principle that the Government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed. Mr. Chairman, we ask that you report our resolution favorably if you can but unfavorably if you must; that you report one way or the other, so that the Senate may have the chance to consider it.”
—Anna Howard Shaw (1847–1919)
“A new talker will often call her caregiver “mommy,” which makes parents worry that the child is confused about who is who. She isn’t. This is a case of limited vocabulary rather than mixed-up identities. When a child has only one word for the female person who takes care of her, calling both of them “mommy” is understandable.”
—Amy Laura Dombro (20th century)
“The people who resent me do so because I’m a woman, I’m young, and I’m a Bhutto. Well, the simple answer is, it doesn’t matter that I’m a woman, it doesn’t matter that I’m young, and it’s a matter of pride that I’m a Bhutto.”
—Benazir Bhutto (b. 1953)