Ex-PM Gilani dares authorities to arrest him

Published December 13, 2013
Former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani— File photo
Former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani— File photo

MULTAN: Former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday said he would not comply with unconstitutional procedures and dared the authorities to carry out his arrest wherever they wanted to, DawnNews reported.

Addressing a press conference in Multan, Gilani said if former military ruler General (retd) Pervez Musharraf would have been jailed for even at least a month, then he would have accepted that the country’s judiciary operated as an independent institution.

He was speaking in context of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) which has sought assistance from the Multan police to send a second notice to the former prime minister for recording his statement in the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) scam.

In the NICL scam, Gilani has been accused of illegally appointing Ayaz Khan Niazi as the company’s chairman in Feb 2009.

He has also been accused of issuing orders in 2011 for the transfer of former director general of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Zafar Ahmed Qureshi, who was investigating the scam.

Speaking to reporters today, the former premier said NAB chairman Qamar Zaman Chaudhry was himself a wanted man and questioned how the latter could summon him.

Gilani moreover said that although he had been ousted from the office of prime minister despite being elected in a democratic manner, thousands who had directly benefited from the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) remained scot-free.

Gilani alleged that NAB had been questioning him with regard to Moonis Elahi’s role in the NICL scam. The former premier said Moonis, son of former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, had been acquitted in the case but the NAB was trying to drag him.

Editorial

Ominous demands
Updated 18 May, 2024

Ominous demands

The federal government needs to boost its revenues to reduce future borrowing and pay back its existing debt.
Property leaks
18 May, 2024

Property leaks

THE leaked Dubai property data reported on by media organisations around the world earlier this week seems to have...
Heat warnings
18 May, 2024

Heat warnings

STARTING next week, the country must brace for brutal heatwaves. The NDMA warns of severe conditions with...
Dangerous law
Updated 17 May, 2024

Dangerous law

It must remember that the same law can be weaponised against it one day, just as Peca was when the PTI took power.
Uncalled for pressure
17 May, 2024

Uncalled for pressure

THE recent press conferences by Senators Faisal Vawda and Talal Chaudhry, where they demanded evidence from judges...
KP tussle
17 May, 2024

KP tussle

THE growing war of words between KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and Governor Faisal Karim Kundi is affecting...