PHC tells FIA not to act against Qaiser

PESHAWAR/QUETTA/ISLAMABAD: The Peshawar High Court has restrained the FIA from taking action against the former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser.

The agency has been asked six questions from the court: whether or not the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had issued directions to take any kind of action in the case;  did the federal government ask the FIA to investigate the matter; whether or not the case fell into the ambit of the Political Parties Order 2022; if the agency’s summon was based on “mal-intent or whether it was politically influenced"; and whether or not the case fell under the FIA’s jurisdiction.

The court gave the FIA 14 days to submit its response to these queries.

Barrister Gohar Khan, representing Qaiser, told a two-judge bench of the PHC, comprising Justice Shakeel Ahmad and Justice Kamran Hayat Miankhel, that the case did not fall under the domain of the FIA to investigate a case in connection with the ECP.

He added that it was a “foreign funding case” and only the commission could take action on it.

He further maintained that the central party did not benefit from the provincial account and only Rs2.1 million had been transferred to it for the payment of employees’ salaries.

He added that the ECP had thoroughly scrutinised the party’s accounts and the petitioner, Babar, was the first person to submit money to it.

He contended that none of the provincial accounts were under Qaiser’s name and the ECP had not ordered the FIA to conduct an inquiry into the matter.

Additional Attorney General Amir Javed retorted that the ECP had directed the federal government to take action.

He added that the federal government could order the departments under its control to carry out an investigation.

Restraining the FIA from taking any action against Qaiser, the PHC sought a response from the agency on its queries within 14 days.

In Quetta, former National Assembly deputy speaker Qasim Khan Suri, ex-governor of Balochistan Syed Zahoor Agha and other PTI leaders from the province failed to appear before the FIA inquiry team probing into the prohibited funding case.

Read FIA traces bank accounts in Asad Qaiser’s name

The FIA commercial banking circle (CBC) assistant director had summoned the PTI leaders in the provincial capital in connection with the case.

However, Suri maintained that he had learned about the court's summons too late and he could not turn up at the FIA office in Quetta as he was in Islamabad.

"I am not frightened of any summons and ready to face any inquiry,” he added.

PTI leader Muhammad Asif Tareen said the CBC assistant director was one of the inquiry committee members probing the former ruling party's prohibited funding case. “After the Islamabad High Court’s judgment about the foreign [prohibited] funding case, our leaders would not appear before the team,” he added.

However, Suri explained that the PTI's Balochistan account had received Rs5.3 million from 2011 to 2013 for holding a public meeting in Quetta and payment of salaries to the office employees.

"The PTI Balochistan had received this amount from the party’s Islamabad wing,” he added.

In another development, the Islamabad High Court disposed of the PTI's petition against notices issued to it by the FIA in connection with the case

The former ruling party had moved the court against FIA for taking action following the ECP’s verdict in the prohibited funding case.

Last week, the IHC had suspended the notices sent by the FIA and sought comments till August 10.

The court had also summoned FIA officials in person for the next hearing.

On Thursday, acting IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq issued a four-page written decision on the matter.

The judge ruled that the notices against which the application was filed have been implemented.

After the PTI secretariat employees responded to the notices and the inquiry in question took place, the application became ineffective, stated the judgment.

The ruling noted that the petitioner’s counsel had pleaded that the notices were issued in violation of the court order and FIA circular. However, it added that the court had said the FIA circular was issued only to the cyber-crime wing.

Directing the FIA to provide the appropriate required information in its future notices, the court disposed of the petition.

(With input from our correspondents in Quetta and Islamabad)