MR Tawana, himself a pilot and a retired group captain, if my memory serves me well, has paid rich and well-deserved tribute to retired/deceased Christian officers of the PAF, mostly pilots (July 29).

I personally know another Christian officer, a doctor, who displayed great courage at the risk of his career by telling the truth when most of the witnesses were economical with the truth. This happened at the infamous Badaber trial of PAF officers by a general court martial, a counter-part of an equally infamous Attock trial. Group Cap Zuzart, senior medical officer of the air base, was produced by the prosecution and was supposed to say that he daily visited the accused during their incarceration and noticed that they were looked after very well.

But this courageous doctor refused to toe the doctored line of the prosecution and told the truth that they were badly treated. This created a hush in the courtroom, created a serious flaw in the prosecution case and contributed to some extent to the ultimate acquittal of a great majority of falsely- implicated accused persons. Who would know this incident better than me as I was the judge advocate at the trial and recorded the statement of this honest and courageous doctor.

GROUP CAPT (Retd) S. M. ANWAR Karachi

Opinion

Editorial

Sustainable path?
Updated 13 Jun, 2026

Sustainable path?

The FY27 budget is the first clear signal that the government is ready to transition from stabilisation to growth.
Prioritising education
13 Jun, 2026

Prioritising education

THOUGH the improvement in the country’s literacy rate may be slight, as highlighted by the Economic Survey, it ...
Poverty’s rise
13 Jun, 2026

Poverty’s rise

AS attention turns to the government’s plans for the coming fiscal year, one set of figures deserves particular...
A difficult story
Updated 12 Jun, 2026

A difficult story

Unless productivity becomes the dominant target of economic policy, Pakistan will continue to oscillate between crises and fragile recovery.
Rough waters
12 Jun, 2026

Rough waters

AMONGST the key potential triggers for fresh conflict in South Asia is water. The Indian state is behaving in an...
Politicised football
12 Jun, 2026

Politicised football

ALMOST three-and-half years since Lionel Messi led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory, the latest edition of...