Pakistani High Commission in UK ratifies forensic report of Arshad Malik's video

LONDON: The Pakistani High Commission in the UK has ratified the audio and video forensic report of former accountability court judge Arshad Malik.

Nasir Butt — a British-Pakistani man and the main character of the video scandal implicating the former judge — once again arrived at the High Commission earlier today for a confirmation of the report. The office had previously refused to ratify it four times.

In this regard, Butt told Geo.tv that the report contained evidence of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's innocence and, therefore, should have been presented at the September 1, 2019, hearing.

Read more: Two UK forensic firms authenticate Judge Arshad Malik’s videos

"A British firm confirmed that the forensic report is genuine," he said, adding that Malik's removal was also a proof of Nawaz's innocence.

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) had earlier directed for the High Commission in the UK to verify the report.

In Sept 2019, two leading forensic firms had authenticated the audios, videos, and transcripts of Malik for Pakistan courts — recorded secretly by PML-N UK Senior Vice President Nasir Butt.

Also read: Nasir Janjua reaches London after Judge Arshad Malik video case sent to ATC

Credible sources familiar with the former premier's case had confirmed in their notes at the time that the media presented to them for testing was genuine and original and the contents not been tampered with or altered at any stage.

It was the same conclusion Pakistani investigators had privately arrived at.

The former judge's video had caused a storm in Pakistan after PML-N released part of the videos — withholding six out of total seven videos — in which Malik was seen admitting that he was blackmailed and pressurised to give a verdict against Nawaz in order to jail him.

Geo.tv had reported in back October 2019 that the High Commission had rejected Butt's request to attest a forensic report by a British firm, saying it could not do so until a Pakistani court asked them. The diplomatic staff at the mission, however, had only attested the lawyer’s letter for the IHC.

Related: Pakistani HC rejects Nasir Butt's request to attest forensic report

This had marked the fourth time in two weeks that Butt visited the office to seek the attestation of the forensic report. A high commission official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, claimed that the Foreign Office has instructed the diplomats to not to attest the forensic report.

Back in January 2020, Nasir Janjua, another central character in the former judge's video scandal, flew from Pakistan to London after the Federal Investigating Agency (FIA) initiated a fresh probe into the case following Bashir Memon's resignation and Wajid Zia's appointment as the agency's chief.

A source close to Janjua had said he decided to leave Pakistan after the case was transferred to an anti-terrorism court (ATC).