Pakistan - Malik Riaz and CJ's Son

BOMBSHELL or damp squib? These are early days yet to judge the ultimate impact of the extraordinary accusations levelled by Malik Riaz against Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry. Today the SC will start to grapple with the contents and fallout of Mr Riaz`s outburst on Tuesday. Also scheduled for today is the next hearing in the case between Mr Riaz and Arsalan Iftikhar, which could shed further light on the alleged nexus between the judiciary, politics and powerful business interests. Only this much is clear so far: both Mr Riaz and Mr Iftikhar are guilty of at least some impropriety.

The claim by the Bahria Town magnate that he shelled out millions of rupees to the chief justice`s son because he was being blackmailed doesn`t appear plausible. It is far more likely that Mr Riaz was hoping his wealth would help bend court judgments in his favour.

Similarly, Mr Iftikhar appears to have no real explanation for the wealth he has accumulated in a short span of time. It seems likely that he did take money from Mr Riaz and what other reason would he have to accept under-the-table payments other than in return for a promise of illegal help to the Bahria Town owner who is fighting on many legal fronts to protect hisbusiness interests? At the very least, having claimed to have never met Mr Riaz, Mr Iftikhar will have to answer why the business tycoon has now claimed to have met him in the presence of the chief justice and others.

There is much more at stake, however, than the accusations and counteraccusations. The credibility of the SC is on the line in an era in which corruption and malfeasance have become the overwhelming norm. This is not a matter for a full court meeting scheduled for Friday but for something far more transparent and capable of cutting through conflicting claims that characterise such tawdry deals made in the shadows. Mr Riaz has claimed and Aitzaz Ahsan has confirmed that the chief justice was aware of the allegations against his son before suo motu action was taken by him after the stories appeared online.

So why the delay? And now that it has been revealed that the chief justice did meet Mr Riaz during the time he was fighting to return to office, the country deserves to know the full truth about the relationship between the country`s top judge and a powerful backroom political player. While we would like to believe that the chief justice had no role in the matter, sunlight is needed whatever the dark secrets kept hidden so far.