ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has posed a question whether a graft case can be reopened after acquittal under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, a jurisdiction which is exercised in public-interest matters.

A two-judge bench of the top court, comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, has also sought a written reply from the government, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the petitioner regarding maintainability of a constitutional petition.

The petition, filed by President of Lawyers Foundation for Justice Feroz Shah Gilani, had sought recovery of losses Pakistan incurred after the promulgation of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) by former military ruler General Pervez Musharraf.

In his petition, Gilani requested the court to order recovery of money misappropriated and wasted by the respondents through unlawful means “already on record in different judgments of the Supreme Court and high courts”.

He said Musharraf subverted the Constitution by declaring emergency followed by promulgation of the NRO, arbitrarily withdrawing criminal and corruption cases against politicians, including Pakistan Peoples Party Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari – causing huge financial losses to the national exchequer.

Since the Supreme Court in its landmark judgment of Dec 16, 2009 has declared the NRO void ab initio, the respondents are liable to compensate for the losses and the damage suffered by the exchequer, including the loss of $60 million stashed in Swiss banks allegedly by Zardari, the petitioner said.

He said former attorney general Malik Qayyum wrote a letter to the attorney general for Geneva withdrawing criminal and civil proceedings against Zardari, but the Supreme Court in its 2009 judgment held that Qayyum had written the letter in his personal capacity against the Rules of Business, 1973.

“The actions of Mr Musharraf and Mr Qayyum by promulgating the NRO caused huge losses amounting to billions of rupees to debt-ridden Pakistan.

“Both willfully violated the oath of office to the detriment of the country in violation of the rule of the law, particularly of Articles 2, 2A, 25, 227 of the Constitution, the petition alleges,” he added.

After several hearings, the bench on Friday asked the applicant to satisfy the court regarding the maintainability of the petition. The court also asked the federal government and NAB to submit replies over the status of the Swiss cases which were reopened after the SC verdict.

After their response, the court will decide about the maintainability of the petition. The bench has also decided not to make public affidavits of Zardari, Musharraf and Qayyum regarding their asset details.

Justice Ahsan, however, made it clear that there would be no injustice with anyone as the decision would be taken in accordance with the law and the Constitution. The judge also questioned “what are the evidences to establish that the money stashed in Swiss banks is the country’s wealth”.

The petitioner requested the bench to grant him time as he was not provided complete documents. He contended that the SC in the NRO verdict mentioned that public money was lying in Swiss banks, adding that $60 million should be recovered.

Justice Ahsan inquired about evidence proving the money was stolen.

Zardari’s counsel Farooq H Naek said the PPP co-chairman had been acquitted in cases pertaining to money stashed in Swiss accounts.

Additional Attorney General Nayyar Rizvi submitted that the NRO was a past and closed transaction and it would be inappropriate to reopen trial of the respondents through constitutional petitions. However, the bench asked him to give a written reply on the matter. Hearing of the case was adjourned for three weeks.

Interestingly, Zardari and his children have already submitted details of their assets. In the last hearing, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar had asked Naek to convey to Zardari that judges had no bias against anyone.

The bench had also asked the petitioner to justify his petition filed under the Articles 4 and 10A of the Constitution. “I think we should not proceed in this matter [any] further,” the CJP had said.

However, he changed his mind after going through the petition’s contents, emphasising on Article 4 of the Constitution, which says the right of individuals should be dealt with in accordance with the law.

Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid has predicted a major arrest from Sindh, as part of the government’s ongoing campaign against corruption.

“I can predict an end to corrupt politicians this year,” Rashid said while addressing a news conference in Lahore. “I can see new faces emerge in the political arena.

“The AML chief said, “A lot of money is going to be recovered from the faloda seller,” and added that the bank accounts of the faloda seller will reveal who have been given benefits from those.

On Tuesday, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said a plan was being hatched to put him behind bars. “These days, there are rumours that I will be arrested but that won’t be something new for me as I have seen many barracks in the past.”

On November 1, the veteran politician said that he may be put behind bars, but those doing so will first have to prove that he had deposited money in fake bank accounts.

“If I transferred any money into the accounts of a faloda seller or a rickshaw driver, then I can do that,” the former president said, and added, “but that needs to be proved.”

In September, the top court ordered formation of a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe alleged money laundering of at least Rs35 billion through fake bank accounts.

Asif Ali Zardari, his sister Faryal Talpur, Omni Group’s Anwar Majeed, former Pakistan Stock Exchange chairman Hussain Lawai and Summit Bank Senior Vice-President Taha Raza are among those being investigated by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for alleged money laundering of over Rs35 billion through fake accounts.

Pakistan Army has shot down yet another Indian spy drone hovering over this side of the Line of Control (LoC) after intruding into the Chirikot sector in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the military’s media wing said.

“Pakistan Army troops shot down an Indian spy drone while it violated LoC in Chirikot Sector. The drone has been taken over by Pakistan Army troops,” said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Tuesday.

“This is 4th drone which has been shot down by Pakistan Army troops in last one year,” the ISPR added.

The instances of ceasefire violations by the Indian forces recorded an alarming increase since the start of the month February following which the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government has readied an evacuation plan for the residents near the LoC.

Last week, Pakistan lodged a protest with India against the ceasefire violations, summoning Indian Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh at the Foreign Office.

LAHORE: Two men were killed in a road accident in Sundar area of the metropolis on Sunday. Police said Abdul Razzaq and Nasir Khan were traveling on a motorcycle when a speedy dumper hit them. The victims fell down, suffered injuries and were admitted to a nearby hospital where doctors pronounced them dead on arrival. The driver of the dumper fled from the scene. On information of the incident, a police team reached the spot and shifted the bodies to the morgue for autopsy. They also collected forensic evidences from the crime scene and recorded statements of the eyewitnesses. Police have impounded the dumper. According to initial investigations, the victims belonged to Vehari District. They worked in a factory in Sundar Industrial Estate.

KARACHI: Amid the rifts between its various factions, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has suffered greatly. The Senate elections proved that a divided MQM is one lacking power.

Despite Farooq Sattar’s efforts, and sacrifices, Kamran Tessori was not elected to the Senate. The Bahadurabad group failed to win more than a single seat. Even on the day of the Senate elections, members of both groups were divided – three MQM MPAs did not cast their votes, while 14 voted against their party heads’ decisions.

Despite its 38 members in the Sindh Assembly, the once powerful MQM won only a single Senate seat – Barrister Farogh Nasim. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) swept the elections by bagging 10 seats. The last seat was won by Pakistan Muslim League-Functional, which has only nine votes in the assembly.
The party’s strategy in the Senate elections proved to be rather unsuccessful. Even though the heads of both factions – Bahadurabad and PIB Colony – held a joint press conference in Islamabad following the announcement of the results, neither trusted nor had confidence in each other. This was illustrated on the day of the elections – all the leaders of the Bahadarabad group sat in Leader of the Opposition Khawaja Izharul Hasan’s chamber and gave MPAs directions. The PIB group leaders sat in parliamentary leader Sardar Ahmed’s chamber.

According to sources, the factions’ differences came out in the open on election day. Sattar briefly visited Hasan’s chamber but spent most of his time in Ahmed’s chamber with Tessori and other leaders.

The sources revealed that both groups expressed concern when they received information that five female MQM MPAs – Naheeda Begum, Naila Latif, Shazia Farooq, Heer Ismail Soho and Sumita Afzal – cast their votes in favor of PPP leaders and left. Due to this development, consultation between both groups began once again.

While the consultations were underway, both the groups received news that an MPA from Sukkur, Saleem Bandhani, came to the assembly with PPP leader Mukesh Chawala and left after casting his vote. This prompted both factions to scramble to begin lobbying for their respective candidates. The Bahadurabad group started lobbying for Nasim, while PIB began campaigning for Tessori.

According to the sources, the six members of the MQM who cast their votes and left were contacted via telephone by both groups but they did not speak to them. The sources also revealed that Sattar told Kunwar Naveed that if the situation continued, they would not be able to secure a single seat. He asked Naveed to get the MPAs on his side to vote for Tessori, to which Naveed expressed dismay that he was still giving priority to Tessori. He also blamed Sattar for the situation, saying it was due to his poor decisions.

According to sources, confusion persisted amongst MQM MPAs, some of whom made a deal with the PPP. Around four members marked an X instead of voting for either candidate in protest.

The Senate election debacle widened the rift between the two factions. Some MQM MPAs told Express News that Sattar put the party at risk for Tessori. They said that they were consulting with other party members regarding the MQM’s political future. One group accused Amir Khan and Faisal Sabzwari of being responsible for the entire situation. They claimed that they want to take over the MQM.

Sources have said that in the coming days, MQM leaders are expected to hold important press conferences.