KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) rejected on Monday the bail of a food department official, who has been accused of stealing wheat worth Rs10 million from a government godown.
Adnan Ahmed Magsi, who is currently in the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (Nab), had filed a bail plea through his lawyer. According to Advocate Abdul Salam Baloch, Nab officials initiated an inquiry on March 28 into 3,987 missing bags of wheat stored at the Provincial Reserve Centre of the food department in district Shaheed Benazirabad (formerly known as Nawabshah).
On July 24, the Nab officials took Magsi into custody, who was serving as the food inspector and posted as incharge of the reserve centre, in connection with the scam. The officials claimed that the theft caused losses worth Rs11.9 million.
The lawyers informed the two judges that the authorities later asked the applicant to voluntarily return the misappropriated amount, as part of the legal benefit offered to the accused under Section 25(a) of the National Accountability Ordinance 1999.
He mentioned that the officials ordered the petitioner to return the amount at a rate of Rs3,000 per bag, including a penalty of Rs200 per bag. However, they arrested him on allegations that the application for voluntary return was not signed by Magsi. The lawyer argued that Magsi has been in the custody for 39 days, which is against the law and pleaded the court grant him bail.
On Monday, Nab additional deputy prosecutor general Muhammad Altaf filed his report, stating that the allegations against the petitioner have been found true in the inquiry. He argued that Magsi, who was the incharge of the government godown, never reported to the higher authorities about the missing wheat bags, which made the case stronger. He pleaded the court reject the bail.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 18th, 2014.
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