Haris steels case: Afzal asks bank officials to drop FIR, or else...

CEO sends threatening messages despite being imprisoned.

LAHORE: Chief Executive Officer of the Haris Steel Mills, Sheikh Afzal asked bank officials to withdraw a First Information Report (FIR) registered against his wife and son – in a rather threatening manner, The Express Tribune has learnt. 

Afzal, who is accused of obtaining a loan worth Rs9 billion from the Bank of Punjab (BoP), despite imprisonment, threatened two bankers via phone calls and text messages, who froze his properties during an investigation, and gave details of his possessions to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

During this process, an FIR was also registered against Afzal’s wife, Fareeha Afzal, and his son, Hamza Afzal, on the complaint of a bank official of the BoP, who froze properties owned by the accused.

The FIR was registered against Afzal’s family when a Station House Officer (SHO) was summoned by the chief minister secretariat. Immediately after the registration of the case, the FIR was sealed on the instructions of the high-ups.



When Afzal learnt about the development, he contacted bank official and handed him an affidavit which stated that during the possession of properties owned by Afzal, his family never interfered and did not threaten any bank officials.

It thereby requested to put a stop to any further proceedings against the accused and his family and to cancel the FIR. After being turned down, Afzal sent threatening messages and telephone calls to the bank official, despite being in jail.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 10^th, 2012.