On April 22, 2024, alleged travel documents of IHC Justice Babar Sattar began circulating on social media platforms with the claim that he had hidden his US citizenship. However, the Islamabad High Court clarified that the judge was never a US national.
Justice Babar Sattar is a dual national with US citizenship
The iVerify Pakistan team has checked this content and has established that it is false.
To arrive at this verdict, the iVerify Pakistan team has checked the press release issued by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) providing clarification on the matter.
On April 22, 2024, the Pakistan Lawyers Forum, which describes itself as the “official forum for all lawyers of Pakistan” that claims to represent “all bar councils and lawyer organisations”, made a post on X accusing IHC Justice Babar Sattar of hiding his US citizenship.
The post shared pictures of the judge’s and his family’s alleged travel documents, suggesting that he was a US national.
The caption for the post said, “Pakistan Lawyers Forum is expressing strong reservations about Justice Babar Sattar. Why didn’t Justice Babar Sattar declare his American citizenship on September 22, 2005? His family members are also American citizens.”
The post garnered around 212,000 views and 1,100 reshares.
In another X post on April 23 with over 2,000 views, digital news outlet Islamabad Insider said, “American national Babar Sattar cleverly hid his dual citizenship before taking oath as a judge of the Islamabad High Court.”
It added, “The Supreme Judicial Council should investigate this matter and decide whether an American citizen can serve as a judge in Pakistan.”
Several other posts were observed as well sharing the same claims and alleged travel documents of the judge and his family, saying that the judge had hidden his dual nationality.
The iVerify Pakistan sought to determine the veracity of the claim due to its virality and because of the nature of the allegations against a sitting IHC judge who has been at the centre of recent developments regarding the court.
To verify the claim, the team investigated if there were any news articles pertaining to the judge’s alleged US citizenship but found nothing.
Albeit a December 10, 2020, article by The Express Tribune, titled “JCP extra cautious in appointing new judges”, said the Judicial Commission of Pakistan had deliberated on Justice Sattar’s financial interests and property ownership in the US before recommending his nomination to the IHC.
However, as the current allegations continued to gain strength, the IHC itself issued a press release on April 28 and said that Justice Sattar did not have US citizenship.
According to the IHC’s statement, “Justice Babar Sattar has never had any nationality other than that of Pakistan.”
The IHC clarified that Justice Sattar worked as a lawyer with a New York law firm and was issued a Permanent Resident Card, also known as the Green Card, while he was there in the US.
According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, “Having a Green Card (officially known as a Permanent Resident Card) allows you to live and work permanently in the United States.”
Importantly, having a Green Card does not necessarily make someone a US citizen and they are not synonymous. Rather, being a lawful permanent resident for five years is one of the ways towards getting a US citizenship.
Similarly, the IHC statement said, “Prior to Justice Sattar’s elevation as a judge of IHC, he had reported to Chief Justice 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.”
The press statement further said, “Justice Babar Sattar owns real estate assets in Pakistan and the US, which are listed in his Tax Returns that were scrutinised by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan prior to his elevation as Judge.”
Justice Sattar is one of the six IHC judges who wrote a letter to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) on March 26, 2024, alleging interference by the intelligence apparatus in judicial affairs.
The issue is one that gripped the country’s legal and judicial fraternity with a suo motu notice taken of the matter. During this time, threatening letters laced with a powder-like substance were also sent to the IHC judges, including Justice Sattar.
The iVerify Pakistan team has determined that the claim against Justice Babar Sattar holding dual nationality after his elevation as an IHC judge is false.
The press release issued by the IHC provided all the details regarding his citizenship, confirming that Justice Sattar never held the nationality of any other country.
