The Prosecutor General Accountability (PGA) Muhammad Karim Khan Agha visited National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) Punjab Regional Office in Lahore after hearing reports of prosecutorial misconduct and misuse of authority in the Haris Steels Mill case and Canal Motor scandals.
Mian Hanif Tahir, the prosecutor of the case, has been removed for allegedly damaging the trial and favouring the key accused in the Haris Steels Mills case, The Express Tribune has learnt. Following the orders of NAB chairman and on Agha’s recommendation, an inquiry has been initiated against Tahir.
The accused in the Haris Steels case, with the help of the Bank of Punjab (BoP) officials, succeeded in obtaining a loan worth rupees nine billion from the BoP upon falsifying CNICs and other documents.
Agha also constituted a two-member Special Team of Prosecutors, comprising Tariq Qureshi and Muneeb Ashraf Cheema, to prosecute the Haris Steels case, sources privy to the development confirmed.
A probe committee, comprising Director General Awareness and Prevention Brigadier (retd) Musaddaq Abbasi and Shumail Aziz, Special Prosecutor and Senior Legal Consultant at NAB headquarters in Islamabad, has been formed to investigate the charges of misconduct, corruption and friendly prosecution, sources familiar with the matter revealed.
Earlier, Tahir came under fire as intelligence sources identified certain activities designed to sabotage the case and shield Chaudhry Afzal and Hamesh Khan, sources said. To this, Agha said that anyone who tries to prevent officials from discharging their duties will be brought to justice.
Agha advised new prosecutors on methods of recovering the damage in the Haris Steels Mills (BoP) case. In the Canal Motor case, he directed the case officer (Additional Director) NAB Etram Dar, Investigation Officer (Assistant Director) Malik Waheed, to file the much delayed reference to the government before the December 22nd deadline.
Agha was also briefed about cases under trial. He directed officials of the prosecution wing, to strictly adhere to the best prosecutorial practices and relentlessly pursue the interests of state. He directed prosecutors to conduct all trials, particularly those of mega corruption cases, swiftly to ensure immediate punishment of the accused.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 17th, 2012.
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