ISLAMABAD:
A day after securing pre-arrest bail from the Supreme Court following high drama, Ali Musa Gilani, son of former premier Yousaf Raza Gilani, urged the court to take strict action against the Anti Narcotics Force (ANF).
“…Strict action (should) be taken against the officials to secure the prestige, might, and honour of the court as well as the lawyers in the best interest of justice,” stated an application submitted on Saturday by the legal team of Ali Musa, while calling for action against ANF officials accused of manhandling and harassing the former prime minister’s son, who is one of the principal accused in an ephedrine scam.
The application gave an account of events that took place on Friday: “The ANF officials ruthlessly disregarded the applicants’ request and pushed him, manhandled him, in a extreme, harsh and bad manner and ferociously declined [his] entry in the Supreme Court and said that they will not let us approach the court come what may. Thereafter, they arrested my client by dragging him out of his vehicle and virtually throwing him in their official vehicle and took him away.”
“The footage of the incident is also available and the applicant can identify the said officials who were in plain clothes and also those who were in uniform,” it added.
On Friday, Ali Musa, a member of the National Assembly, arrived at the apex court premises to appear before a three-judge bench in connection with a petition he had moved on Thursday for bail before arrest.
When he arrived, ANF personnel grabbed Ali Musa, handcuffed him, threw him into a vehicle and took him to the ANF regional office. This was all done in disregard to Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry’s recent directive to the ANF that it should not harass anyone during the investigations.
After the incident, Justice Nasirul Mulk observed in a short order, which granted pre-arrest bail to Ali Musa, that “it is indeed regretful that the petitioner, who had approached this court for relief was arrested and prevented from entering the Supreme Court building. We will, however, deal with this incident later at the time of hearing the main petition.”
After submitting the application, the former premier’s son told the media that he was granted bail by the Supreme Court in the ephedrine quota case on merit and the apex court had not done him a “favour”. He alleged that the ANF was becoming too personal against him.
“They held a press conference today and said that they did not want me to become a hero. I’m not here to become a hero. How can a government worker give such a political statement?” he said while lashing out against the anti-narcotics body.
He added that whatever happened on the Supreme Court’s premises yesterday was in contempt of the court as well as himself. “I will move a privilege motion against the contempt done against me, and have submitted a contempt of court application as well.”
NA response
Meanwhile, the military-led ANF will face a privilege motion in the National Assembly over the manhandling incident.
Under parliamentary rules, a privilege motion, once accepted by the House, is sent to the privilege committee which takes up action against those who it considers have violated the privilege of an elected representative.
Federal lawmaker and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Shahnaz Wazir Ali announced on Saturday that a motion would be presented before the NA.
WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY OUR CORRESPONDENT
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2012.
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