September 19, 2002	Thursday	Rajab 11, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Sept 18: The National Accountability Bureau counsel, Afzal Siddique (advocate), on Wednesday stated before the Supreme Court that the punishment, prescribed for corruption under the NAB Ordinance, was mild.

The Supreme Court bench observed, that it never expected a lawyer to argue the case before the apex court in this manner, and suggested that if he thought the punishment was less, he should suggest to the government a “death sentence for the act of corruption.”

The SC bench, comprising Justice Munir A. Sheikh, Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, and Justice Faqir Khokhar, observed that the executive enjoyed the legislative powers as well, and if it was convinced that the punishment for the corrupt public office- holder was less, they should enhance it instead of making bold statements before the court.

Justice Munir A. Sheikh observed that if there were no courts, the government would hang people for corruption.

Opposing the request for bail by one Mehar Khan Mohammad, convicted by the Accountability Court, Karachi, the NAB counsel said that in view of the amount of corruption the petitioner had committed his request should not be accepted.

Justice Munir A. Sheikh observed that when the FIA was created in 1970s, an impression was given that a person arrested by the FIA could not be released even on the intervention of the courts.

The courts, he said, had to clarify that the FIA too, was one of the investigative agencies, and nothing more than that. The judge observed that similar impression was being created for NAB, which too was not correct.

The petitioner had requested the court to order his release as he had already undergone the sentence awarded to him, and the imprisonment, which he had to undergo in case of non-payment of fine, should be condoned.

The NAB counsel sought an adjournment to verify whether the petitioner had undergone the entire punishment awarded to him. He further stated that he wanted to check, how was he given exemptions which were specifically denied to those convicted by NAB courts. The case was adjourned until next Wednesday, Sept 25.

In another case, the court granted leave to appeal to Abdul Sattar Dhero, ex-employee of Karachi Port Trust, to examine the question whether the court of competent jurisdiction was bound to transfer the case pending before it to the accountability court, on the request of prosecutor-general accountability.