Islamabad: The Pakistani Parliamentary panel investigating a mysterious memo that triggered a standoff between the civilian government and the military on Thursday issued summons to American businessman Mansoor Ijaz, the central figure in the scandal, to appear before it on February 10.
Against the backdrop of Ijaz's repeated claims that he would not come to Pakistan to provide evidence regarding the alleged memo due to perceived threats to his life, the Parliamentary Committee on National Security expressed satisfaction at arrangements made by the government to protect him in the country.
The panel reviewed security arrangements for Ijaz during a meeting chaired by Raza Rabbani, a senior leader of the ruling Pakistan People's Party.
Attorney General Anwar-ul-Haq briefed the committee on security arrangements put in place for Ijaz and the government's communications with Canadian firm Research In Motion to obtain BlackBerry communications by Ijaz regarding the alleged memo.
RIM has already turned down Pakistan's request to hand over the communications.
Ijaz has failed to make two scheduled appearances before a Supreme Court-appointed judicial commission that is also investigating the alleged memo which sought US help to stave off a feared coup in Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden last year.
The judicial commission has given Ijaz a final opportunity to appear before it on February 9 and record his statement.
The judicial commission also rejected Ijaz's request to allow him to depose in London or Zurich.
Briefing reporters after today's meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Raza Rabbani said that if Ijaz continued to have concerns about his security, the authorities could take further steps to allay his apprehensions while keeping in view the law of the land.
The committee had reviewed the statement of the Attorney General and reached the conclusion that prima facie, the arrangements for Ijaz's security were adequate, he said.
"The committee feels that if Mansoor Ijaz has any apprehensions regarding his security, it may be addressed keeping in view rules and the law of the land," he added.
Raza Rabbani said the committee has decided to issue a fresh notice to Ijaz asking him to appear before it on February 10.
"This notice will be served in accordance with the past practice and through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," he said.
Pakistan's former envoy to the US, Husain Haqqani, was forced to resign after the memo became public.
Though the scandal triggered a confrontation between the military and civilian governments, tensions have been defused following meetings between President Asif Ali Zardari and senior military officials, including army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.
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