The Islamabad High Court clarified on Sunday that one of its judges Justice Babar Sattar does not hold dual nationality, amid a ‘malicious’ social media campaign against him after a letter was written to the Supreme Judicial Council.

“Justice Babar Sattar has never had any nationality other than that of Pakistan,” said a press release from the Islamabad High Court.

The statement was issued after a social media campaign against the judge which the high court described as “false, malicious and contemptuous”.

As part of the campaign, the confidential information has been posted and reposted on social media, including travel documents of the judge, his wife and children, accompanied by “untruthful” allegations, and details of his properties provided in his tax returns.

The campaign started against the backdrop of a letter from six IHC judges to the five members of the Supreme Judicial Council. Justice Sattar was one of the judges who signed the letter.

In the March 25 letter, they demanded that a judicial convention be summoned over the alleged intelligence agencies’ interference in the judiciary.

It contained 10 points, mentioning the events where alleged interference by spy agencies and the executive in the judiciary were seen.

After former chief justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani refused to become part of the one-man commission formed to probe the allegations, the Supreme Court constituted a seven-member bench to probe the claims of meddling.

A new bench would take up conduct the suo motu proceedings on April 30 after Justice Yahya Afridi recused himself from being part of the bench.

When journalist Hamir Mir appeared on Aaj News show Rubaroo earlier this month, he described the judicial meddling case as a “big challenge” for CJP Isa.

Several journalists and legal experts were giving their opinion on social media amid the campaign.

According to the IHC statement, Justice studied law at the Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and pursued graduate education at Harvard Law School.

He worked as a lawyer with a law firm in New York and while living and working in the US, was “issued the Permanent Resident Card [also called Green Card] after being regarded as a person of extraordinary ability.”

He left his job in the US in 2005 and returned to Pakistan and has lived and worked in Pakistan since then.

“Justice Babar Sattar’s wife and children are citizens of Pakistan and the US. They were living in the US till 2021, but returned to Pakistan after Justice Babar Sattar was appointed as a judge of IHC and now live in Islamabad.

Prior to Justice Sattar’s elevation as a judge of IHC, he had reported to the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court that he was a Pakistani national and had a Green Card that allowed him to travel to the US without a visa,“ it said.

It added that the IHC judge’s mother was an educationist who established a school in Rawalpindi in 1992 as its sole proprietor. Justice Sattar has no ownership interest in it and is not involved with its management.

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Before being appointed a judge, his law firm acted as legal adviser to the school and received a retainer fee for its legal services. The IHC judge owned real estate assets in Pakistan and the US, which are listed in his tax returns that were scrutinized by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan prior to his elevation as a judge.

“All real estate assets that he owns are either inherited or were acquired while he was a lawyer. He has acquired no real estate assets since his appointment as a Judge. He is not involved with the management of any business entity. As a judge, he has not presided over any cases in which any of his family members has any interest.”