Petitioner told to approach police for FIR revision

He had wanted offences pertaining to forgery added to his copyrights violation case.

LAHORE: A petition seeking addition of offences related to forgery to an FIR registered over copyrights violation was disposed of on Friday and the petitioner asked to approach the investigation officer for the purpose.

The additional district and sessions judge observed that addition or deletion of offences could not be ordered until the FIR was brought before a court. He observed that the police were currently investigating the matter and should therefore be approached for addition of offences to the FIR.

Petitioner Brig (retd) Eng Ahmed Mehmood Iqbal had requested the court to add Sections 465 (punishment for forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 469 (forgery for purpose of harming reputation), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) and 472 (making or possessing counterfeit seal, etc, with intent to commit forgery) of the Pakistan Penal Code to an FIR registered on his complaint against Arshad Iqbal on March 10. The FIR had accused Iqbal of using a trademark registered in the name of the petitioner to do business with the Ministry Of Defense (MOD) and the Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT).

Brig (retd) Iqbal stated in the FIR that he had closed down his company named M Rubberex Road Wheels Pvt Ltd and sold all its assets in 2006. He said until its closure the company had been registered with the HIT and the MOD as a manufacturer and supplier of defence products (china rubber used to cover tank wheels).

He said that he had recently learnt about the illegal use of his trademark when he was approached with a business proposal by some representatives of the HIT. “They told me the company was still doing business with them through a man named Arshad Iqbal,” he said.

“An investigation by the HIT then revealed that the suspect was also doing business with the General Headquarters (GHQ) and the MoD using my trademark,” he said.

The FIR stated that the inquiry also found that he was using logos associated with the Pakistan Armed Forces on his website.

The FIR registered under Sections 66/66A of the Copyrights Ordinance of 1962 and Section 420 (cheating) of the PPC sought action against the suspect for illegal use of a brand name.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 29^th, 2015.