Weapons’ scam: NAB’s application of summoning six suspects put on backburner

Judge says matter to be taken up after petitions of other accused decided.

PESHAWAR:

In its first hearing after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed a corruption reference, the accountability court hearing the weapons’ scam case declared that the NAB application clarifying the position of six suspects will be entertained once petitions of the three co-accused are decided.

Two of the four accused appeared in the court of judge Muhammad Ibrahim Khan while the main suspect, former IGP Malik Naveed, did not appear as he is on bail till April 5 and Amir Ghazan Hoti, the brother of former chief minister Amir Haider Hoti, was also absent.

“The summons issued for accused Amir Ghazan who is an absconder have returned un-served. Fresh summons should be issued, while the executing official is directed to attend the court in pursuance whether the summons have been executed or not,” states the order issued by the accountability judge.

The order further reads that on March 28, NAB filed an application to explain further the roles of six other suspects, which will be taken up when the petitions of Naveed and Raza Ali Khan as well as the bail before arrest application of Ghazan is decided.

On March 23, the court refused to summon six suspects including Commandant Frontier Constabulary Abdul Majeed Khan, former additional IGP Operations Abdul Latif Khan, DIG Central Police Office Sajid Ali Khan, ex-DIG Headquarters Muhammad Suliman Khan, Ex AIG Establishment CPO Kashif Alam, and former DIG Telecommunication Sadiq Kamal Orakzai. The court had observed the status of these suspects was mum in the NAB reference.

During the hearing on Tuesday, Raza and Javed Khan took copies of the reference filed against them while the former IGP’s copy was received by his counsel Abdul Sattar Khan.

Another application for the return of a cell phone along with a SIM was submitted on behalf of Raza, the copy of which was ordered to be provided to NAB authorities, which will come up for consideration on April 10, the next date of hearing.

A NAB official told The Express Tribune they had filed an application before the court to summon six more suspects in the case.

“These officials are guilty of criminal negligence and misused their authority while awarding the Rs7 billion contract to procure weapons and other equipment for the police,” the official said.

The same court granted a 10-day physical remand to Zahid Iqbal who was arrested for allegedly accepting a Rs10 million bribe from contractor Arshad Majeed for promising to use his influence with NAB to close the inquiry.

Similarly, a division bench of the Peshawar High Court,  comprising Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Ikramullah Khan, granted pre-arrest bail to Ghazan Hoti till April 3 and restrained the government from arresting him.

Ghazan’s counsel Qazi Jawad told the court his client wanted to face trial in the weapons scam but he fears NAB will arrest him as soon he lands on the ground from his visit abroad.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 2^nd, 2014.