KARACHI, Sept 24: An anti-corruption court on Saturday dismissed the pre-arrest bail application of an official of the Karachi city government in a graft case.

Syed Kamran Asif, the deputy district officer in the works and services department, has been booked for demanding a bribe from a contractor.

The suspect moved a pre-arrest bail application in court, and on the last hearing he was granted interim bail. The court had directed him to appear on Sept 24 for the confirmation of the bail.

Judge Rashida Asad of the Special Anti-Corruption Court, Karachi dismissed the bail plea after hearing arguments from both sides.

The applicant was taken into custody shortly after the dismissal of his bail and was sent to prison.

According to the prosecution, an electrical works contract worth Rs3.7 million was awarded to Kalam Electric Service in 2009. After completing the job, the contractor asked the DDO to clear the payment of his bill, but the latter demanded Rs500,000 as a bribe for this purpose.

The contactor approached the anti-corruption establishment and called the DDO to collect the money. However, the DDO sent his clerk, Sikandar Memon, who was caught red-handed by an awaiting team of the anti-corruption on July 7.

A case (FIR 19/2011) was registered at the Anti-Corruption Establishment, Karachi against the suspects under Section 161 (public servant taking gratification other than legal remuneration in respect of an official act) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 5 (2) of the Prevention of Anti-corruption Act.

Warrants against 11 accused out

A drugs court on Saturday issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of 11 accused in two cases pertaining to the manufacturing of substandard and spurious drugs.

In the first case, nine accused — Shahid Ali, Inayatullah, Farhad Ali, Sadaf Sana, Syed Naseem-ul-Haq, Jehan Ali, Farooq Baig, Azad Nawaz and Khalid Siddiqui — have been charged with making substandard and poor quality medicines at their manufacturing unit in Hattar, Haripur.

In the second case, two accused — Shams and Faizullah — have been charged with manufacturing spurious drugs at their Quetta-based pharmaceutical company.

All the 11 accused were given bail, but since then they have not attending the court proceedings despite several notices.

The three-member drugs court, headed by chairman Saathi M. Ishaq, issued non-bailable warrants against the 11 accused in the two cases through deputy inspectors general of police concerned with a direction to arrest and produce them in court till Oct 10.

According to the prosecution, a drugs inspector and the Federal Investigation Agency carried out separates raids in 2008 and 2009 in Tando Adam Khan and Karachi on a warehouse and a medical store and recovered substandard and spurious drugs, which were manufactured by the pharmaceutical companies in question.

The accused were booked under the Drugs Act, 1976.

Man acquitted

The same court on Saturday acquitted a man allegedly involved in selling unregistered and unauthorised drugs.

The drugs court directed the heath secretary that efforts be made to improve the performance of drugs inspectors.

Rizwan Siddiqui was accused of selling unregistered and unauthorised (physicians' samples) at a medical store in Sukkur in Feb 2002 when a drugs inspector raided the store and recovered the drugs.

However, the court acquitted the accused since the investigation officer (the drugs inspector) had neither produced the recovered drugs in court nor submitted the charge-sheet.

The court in its order observed that a defective investigation and a lack of skills and interest on the part of drugs inspectors were denting cases and asked the health secretary to take measures to improve the working of the drugs inspectors.