Ephedrine quota scandal: It’s vendetta against the Gilanis, insists Ali Musa

Premier’s son says no evidence brought forward yet, and will return on April 30.

An emphatic Ali Musa Gilani denied any involvement in the Ephedrine quota scandal and said that his family was deliberately ‘targeted’ in the case.

Speaking from South Africa on Express News’s programme To the Point with Shahzeb Khanzada, the premier’s younger son claimed innocence and said that Brigadier Fahim, who had testified in the Supreme Court against him, had yet to present solid evidence.

“From what I have heard on television, a person who claimed he had influential links turned up and asked for the quota,” Ali Musa said.

According to earlier reports, Tauqeer Ahmed Khan, an alleged private secretary to Ali Musa, had helped two pharmaceutical companies in getting the illegal quotas.

Insisting that a man named Tauqeer has never been his personal assistant, Ali Musa said: “Why don’t they bring Tauqeer? Where is he? They should record his statement.”

Vendetta against the Gilanis

He decried the ‘targeting’ of his family and said the authorities immediately picked up anything remotely linked to the Gilanis.

“Why is [former law minister] Barbar Awan not indicted with contempt of court? Why is the hearing of my father’s case being done on a day-to-day basis?” he said.

“The Supreme Court should have the investigations done on merit,” he added.

When asked if the Army was involved in a vendetta against his family, Gilani said that “some entity other than the Army is involved in fanning this.”

Honeymoon and summons

Ali Musa said he had left the country for his honeymoon, before the Supreme Court issued summons for him. He said he had been planning his honeymoon for a while.

“I got married on November 27 and started campaigning for the elections on the 28th,” he said.

“I got elected on February 25, then applied for a visa, which takes one month to process, and then left the country,” he added. He said he will return on April 30 and record a statement at the ANF as per the court’s orders.

He added though that he had never received any summons.

“I was in Islamabad to listen to the president’s address to the joint session and did not receive any summons.”

Once he heard about it on the media, he said he wrote a letter to the investigating officer Zulfiqar, then-DG ANF Major General Syed Shakil Hussian and Secretary ANF that he had nothing to do with the case.

“Only one Brigadier Fahim is talking about it, no other officer has come forward,” he added.

Impersonators making hay

Ali Musa also claimed that there are several impersonators exhorting numerous officials for favours.

He said had one such impersonator arrested from Multan, while DG Okara had arrested another.

He denied that any person by the name of Tauqeer, who had on numerous occasions identified himself as Ali Musa’s personal secretary, had been in his service.

He added that he never phoned any official.

“Till I was elected as an MNA, the prime minister had strictly forbidden us to call up any official, except the CCPO or other local government officials in Multan, to solve problems of the people of our constituency,” Ali Musa added.

Bail extension

The Lahore High Court here on Thursday extended the pre-arrest interim bails for the owners of two pharmaceutical companies – allegedly involved in unlawfully obtaining a quota for Ephedrine – till April 23.

A division bench of the LHC put off the hearing on the bail pleas of the two owners after hearing their lawyers’ arguments.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th, 2012.