SECP commissioner gives statement in record tampering case

Tahir Mahmood says Hijazi told him: ‘Are you a son of prophet that you can’t lie’

ISLAMABAD: The Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has informed a magistrate court that the SECP’s suspended chairman is very aggressive, enjoys close personal relation with top officials of the incumbent government and that is why no one dares to disobey his orders.

The SECP Commissioner Tahir Mahmood recorded his statement before Magistrate Malik Farrukh Nadeem, saying that the Chaudhary Sugar Mills case was closed in back dates on the instructions of the SECP’s suspended chairman, Zafar Hijazi.

Mahmood said that in a meeting on June 20, Hijazi had asked two SECP officials, Abid Hussain and Maheen Fatima, to prepare brief statement and specifically instructed them to write that their statements before the JIT probing Panama case were under duress and coercion and JIT forced them to give statements against the chairman.

On June 21, he said, Hijazi also called a meeting in his office where Abid, Maheen, Ali Azeem Ikram and Muzzafar Mirza participated and Hijazi once again asked Abid and Maheen to change their statements and when they denied, he got upset and threw laptop of Azeem over the table.

“Tum koi nabi kay putter ho jo jhoot nahi bol saktay [are you a son of prophet that you can’t tell a lie],” Mahmood quoted Hijazi as saying to Abid.

In his statement, Mahmood said that he reminded Hijazi: “it is true that the case of CSML, without preparing the report, was closed in back dates on your specific directions.” He added that Hijazi was very angry and threatened Azeem, Abid, and Maheen that he will make sure to put all of them behind bars.”

On June 29, he told the magistrate, when they were going to the FIA office, Hijazi said that he was very upset on Abid, Azeem, Maheen and all three officers will face dire consequences.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2017.