NICL scam: ‘Sharif authorised Elahi’s incarceration at rest house’
Provincial government agrees to declare NADRA facility ‘sub-jail’.
LAHORE:
Moonis Elahi’s arrest by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) scandal and his incarceration in a rest house instead of a jail was the result of a secret deal between Elahi’s family and the federal government, but was implemented with the consent of the Punjab government.
Sources say that the director general of FIA, Waseem Ahmad, personally visited Lahore and gave instructions to ensure that Moonis Elahi was housed in a rest house owned by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) in Lahore.
The FIA then requested the Punjab home department to declare the rest house a ‘sub jail’ so that Elahi could legally be incarcerated there.
The request was made based on a letter issued by the federal interior ministry which stated that Moonis Elahi was under threat and needed to be housed away from a regular jail.
That letter, sources say, was the result of an agreement between Elahi’s family and officials within the federal government.
The Punjab home secretary then issued a letter that allowed Elahi to be held in a relatively more comfortable location.
Elahi also claimed that he was diabetic and that his medical condition necessitated him being housed in a separate facility in order to see a doctor every day.
However, footage from closed-circuit cameras shows no medical personnel visiting Elahi at the rest house.
Meanwhile, the Punjab director general of NADRA, Muhammad Iqbal, was unaware that a facility operated by his department had been declared a sub-jail.
Iqbal was irate when he found out and he demanded an explanation from both the FIA and the Punjab government as to why the rest house was taken over without his permission.
Sources say that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif may have personally authorised the use of a rest house for Moonis Elahi.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 4th, 2011.
Moonis Elahi’s arrest by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) scandal and his incarceration in a rest house instead of a jail was the result of a secret deal between Elahi’s family and the federal government, but was implemented with the consent of the Punjab government.
Sources say that the director general of FIA, Waseem Ahmad, personally visited Lahore and gave instructions to ensure that Moonis Elahi was housed in a rest house owned by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) in Lahore.
The FIA then requested the Punjab home department to declare the rest house a ‘sub jail’ so that Elahi could legally be incarcerated there.
The request was made based on a letter issued by the federal interior ministry which stated that Moonis Elahi was under threat and needed to be housed away from a regular jail.
That letter, sources say, was the result of an agreement between Elahi’s family and officials within the federal government.
The Punjab home secretary then issued a letter that allowed Elahi to be held in a relatively more comfortable location.
Elahi also claimed that he was diabetic and that his medical condition necessitated him being housed in a separate facility in order to see a doctor every day.
However, footage from closed-circuit cameras shows no medical personnel visiting Elahi at the rest house.
Meanwhile, the Punjab director general of NADRA, Muhammad Iqbal, was unaware that a facility operated by his department had been declared a sub-jail.
Iqbal was irate when he found out and he demanded an explanation from both the FIA and the Punjab government as to why the rest house was taken over without his permission.
Sources say that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif may have personally authorised the use of a rest house for Moonis Elahi.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 4th, 2011.