SHC questions certain FIA authorities

Assistant director of the FIA with its banking crimes unit is ordered into custody.

KARACHI: An assistant director of the Federal Investigation Agency with its banking crimes unit, was ordered into custody on Wednesday, for willfully flouting a court’s orders and acting against officials of a non-scheduled bank despite a stay order.

The bench headed by Justice Amir Hani Muslim also asked the standing counsel to “assist the court as to whether the FIA has the authority to inquire [into] and/or investigate against a non-scheduled bank”.

The bench was hearing a constitutional petition on the seizure of a luxury vehicle by the Pakistan Customs (Intelligence and Investigations) and resultant harassment of officials of IGI Investment Bank.

On Wednesday’s hearing, Pervaiz Zardari, a former investigating officer (IO) deputed to seize vehicles without documents, candidly admitted the illegalities committed by the department. He admitted before the court that during his entire service he has never given a detention memo to the person from whom he used to take possession of the vehicle.

This act itself shows that the Directorate of Customs Intelligence has never followed the law while sezing the vehicles. Prima facie, such an act is without jurisdiction and without any lawful authority, the bench said in its order.

The bench held in order that “vehicles which are taken into possession by the Customs authorities are in the nature of trust and we are clear in our mind that the customs officials using it or utilising such vehicles with fictitious number plates are liable to be exposed to criminal proceedings. We are also clear in our mind that the aforesaid acts committed by the customs officials are violation of the law and fall within the cognizance of FIA”.

The bench later ordered the release of IO Chaudhry Sardar and ordered that contempt of court proceedings be initiated against him separately.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 8^th, 2010.