09 January 2004	Friday	16 Ziqa'ad 1424

KARACHI, Jan 8: An accountability court on Thursday sentenced former navy chief Mansoorul Haq and a co-accused to a seven-year jail term in a corruption case.

The former navy chief and Commodore (retd) Mirza Ashfaq Baig were prosecuted for causing over Rs1.8 billion loss to the exchequer in the purchase of three vessels for the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation.

They were fined Rs2 million each. The court also convicted Rear Admiral (retd) Javed Ali in absentia for avoiding legal proceedings against him and sentenced him to a three-year jail term.

Mansoor, co-accused get seven-year term

KARACHI, Jan 8: Former navy chief Mansoorul Haq and a co-accused were sentenced on Monday to a seven-year term in a corruption case by an accountability court.

The former navy chief and Commodore Mirza Ashfaq Baig were prosecuted for causing over Rs1.8 billion loss to the national exchequer in the purchase of three vessels for the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation.

Judge Parkash Lal Ambwani of the AC-4 also fined the two accused Rs2 million each and ordered that the defaulter on the payment would have to undergo an additional one-year term.

According to the prosecution, Mansoorul Haq with criminal intent to obtain undue benefits got an approval for the purchase of ships for the PNSC in 1994 from the then government.

When he was appointed chief of naval staff, he allegedly hatched a conspiracy with absconding accused Rear Admiral Javed Ali and co-accused Ashfaq Baig for the purchase of the ships on much exorbitant prices.

The judge also convicted Admiral Javed Ali in absentia for deliberately avoiding legal proceedings against him and sentenced him to a three-year term.The naval officials were charged with violating the laid down procedure, terms of approval and purchased the ships, which were not technically suitable.

The judge also disqualified the two accused from holding any public office for 10 years. The purchase of ships was against the selection criteria of the Board of Directors and without considering the classification record of the ships, payment of customs, regulatory and other duties.

The ships were Apolonia, purchased for US$14.82 million and later renamed as Sawat, Ora Bhum for US$15.55 million (Shalamar) and Independent Voyager for US$16.77 million.

The accused in collusion, connivance and collaboration with each other and absconding accused Javed Ali fraudulently misused the official authority to obtain undue benefits and they failed to exercise their authority to prevent losses to the exchequer, and, thereby, committed an offence of corruption and corrupt practices as defined under Section 9 of the NAB Ordinance.

It was found that since the purchased ships were substandard in terms of quality and capacity, the PNSC had no option but to run them on a loss basis. Hence, the grand sum of total loss to the tune of Rs1.85 billion was sustained by the corporation.

According to the prosecution, at the relevant time the average price of the three ships of the same capacity and conditions in the world market was US$9.37 million as such the ships in question were purchased at an exorbitant price with the difference of US$19 million.

Admiral Javed Ali and Commodore Mirza Ashfaq Baig were charged with secretly getting the deal approved in connivance with accused Masroorul Haq, and they deliberately omitted to stick to quality and specifications of the ships, which were best suited for the commercial interests of the PNSC.

It was also alleged that the accused inducted the three vessels into the fleet of the PNSC without obtaining an approval for the extension of exemption of import duty. The prosecution was represented by special public prosecutor Sarfraz Ahmed Tanoli, who examined 16 prosecution witnesses.