ISLAMABAD, May 11: After weeks of silence, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif made an astute move on the political chessboard on Wednesday.

At the end of a long consultative meeting with his party colleagues, Mr Sharif called for the constitution of a high-level judicial commission comprising the chief justices of the Supreme and provincial high courts to investigate the American raid that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad on May 2.

By doing so, observers feel, he has put pressure on both the military as well as the PPP-led government.

At a crowded press conference at the Punjab House, he said: “The PML-N rejects an inquiry committee headed by an adjutant general of the army as the party believes it is not possible for such a committee to understand the scope and gravity of the matter.”

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday had informed the National Assembly that the Adjutant General of Pakistan, a Lieutenant General, has been appointed as the inquiry officer to investigate the Abbottabad incident.

Referring to the futility of such exercises in the past he cited the investigation of the Ojhri camp tragedy, the findings of which were never made public.

Mr Sharif, who has just returned from London after a heart surgery, made it clear the decision had been taken by his party because it felt that only a “high-level impartial investigation would enjoy the confidence of the people of Pakistan”.

As has become the habit of Mr Sharif now as far as the PPP government is concerned, he gave a deadline – he demanded that the judicial commission be set up within three days and complete the job within 21 working days. He explained that he had made this demand in a letter to the prime minister as well as recommended the terms of reference under which thecommission should carry out the investigation.

Mr Sharif’s ultimatum has been praised by a number of people for being a rational reaction rather than the emotional response of some politicians and TV talk show hosts who have demanded that heads roll to answer for the negligence or incompetence that allowed American forces to penetrate Pakistani territory.

Instead, as a senior journalist pointed out on a private TV channel, Mr Sharif has in a level-headed manner asked for responsibility to be fixed before demanding randomly that someone or the other resign.

At the same time, his move has been praised for its political astuteness – in a single move Mr Sharif has put both the military and the PPP on the spot as well as struck a popular chord with the populace. The PPP government knows well the risks of ordering such an independent inquiry concerning the military, while Mr Sharif has clearly named and criticised the military which is already squirming under the glare of criticism.

In the rest of his speech also Mr Sharif lashed out at both the PPP and the army, sparing neither. Pointing out that neither the government nor the armed forces had come up with a satisfying response to the disaster that was May 2, he added that the entire nation had been demoralised.

“If one believes that neither the political nor the military leadership was aware of nearly two-hour long American operation, it means that the country’s defence is extremely poor,” he said without mincing words.

He had even harsher words in store for the military; Mr Sharif said the fact that Bin Laden was living in a compound a few hundred meters away from the Pakistan Military Academy, right under the nose of the country’s intelligence agencies, which remained busy in shadowing politicians, was a grave concern.

After the Raymond Davis affair, he said, the raid was a second major development that had caused embarrassment to the people of Pakistan.

The PMLN leader’s criticism of the army did not pass unnoticed. Once his statement ended, he was asked if tension had been building up between the PML-N and military establishment for some time. The former prime minister said he was only talking of rule of law and supremacy of the Constitution.

Terms of referenceAccording the letter, which Mr Sharif said he had written to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, the commission should be appointed under the Pakistan Commission of Inquiry Act, 1956, and comprise the chief justice of Pakistan as its president and the four chief justices of the high courts and chief justice of Islamabad High Court as members.

Its terms of reference are: to ascertain the full facts regarding the presence of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan and the US operation on the night of May 2, 2011; to determine the nature and causes of failures of the civil and military authorities in dealing with this matter; to determine whether there are any agreements, tacit, or explicit for allowing such operations in Pakistani territory, and whether such agreements are legally and constitutionally valid; and to fix responsibility and propose actions against those responsible for the failures and recommend remedial measures.

The letter further says that the commission should have the power to co-opt and summon any person in the service of Pakistan and any other person.