August 08, 2006	Tuesday	Rajab 12, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Aug 7: The Supreme Court on Monday served a notice on the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in a bail petition of a former SC registrar arrested for embezzling government funds amounting to Rs634 million.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Faqir Mohammad Khokhar and Justice Syed Jamshed Ali issued the notice to NAB after it was told that Mohammad Amin Farooqi, ex-registrar Supreme Court, was languishing in jail for the last one and a half years despite being a senior citizen.

Advocate Dr Babar Awan, counsel for the former registrar, told the bench that the instant appeal had been moved against the Lahore High Court’s July 3, 2006, order of rejecting his bail plea.

On the complaint of former Supreme Court registrar Budha Khan, the NAB on June 2, 2005, had taken 14 persons into custody for their alleged role in the financial scam.

The then CJP Nazim Hussain Siddiqui had directed his registrar to lodge the complaint before NAB.

A Supreme Court inquiry initiated for failing to recover a bank guarantee of Rs493 million from the Islamic Investment Bank (IIBL), which added up to Rs634 million after mark up, has recommended these arrests.

The amount was to be refunded to the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) after the apex court rejected a contempt of the court case of Fecto Belarus Tractors Limited.

The complaint had held criminal negligence of Mohammad Amin Farooqi, responsible for the Rs634 million financial scam, as the amount was invested in a non-banking finance company with ulterior motives for extraordinary considerations.

Mr Farooqi invested the money in active connivance with Islamic Investment Bank Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Javed Iqbal Qureshi who later misappropriated the amount with assistance of former IIBL Director Mohammad Nadeem Anwar.