Pak govt threatening Mansoor Ijaz: Lawyer

New Delhi: Mansoor Ijaz, the businessman and the alleged courier in the memogate row, has alleged that he is being threatened by the Pakistan government representatives.

Ijaz's counsel, Akram Sheikh in a written statement to the Judicial Commission, said that the businessman's arrival could have led to a clash between the Government and the Army.

Ijaz, an American of Pakistani origin who triggered a confrontation between Pakistan's civilian government and the powerful military by making public a secret memo that sought the US help to stave off a feared coup in Pakistan last year, said in a statement that he was willing to depose before the Supreme Court-appointed commission in London or Zurich.

Mansoor Ijaz had said that he was willing to depose before the Supreme Court-appointed commission in London or Zurich.

In the statement released through his lawyer Akram Sheikh, Ijaz said he had been given 'no assurance' by any person on behalf of Pakistan government to ward off his apprehensions regarding his security.

"It seems like a well-orchestrated trap to hold Mansoor Ijaz indefinitely in Pakistan after his deposition before the commission. Therefore, Mansoor Ijaz has decided to make a request to the commission to record his statement in strict compliance with the order of the Supreme Court of Pakistan... in London or Zurich," Sheikh told the media.

Ijaz had earlier failed to make a scheduled appearance before the three-judge commission on January 16. The commission then asked him to appear before it on January 24.

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