ISLAMABAD: An accused in ephedrine case on Tuesday filed an application in the Control of Narcotics Substances (CNS) Court, challenging investigation in the case.

Iftikhar Babar, chief executive of Berlix Pharmaceutical, was accused of procuring 6,500kg ephedrine illegally and then selling it to the narcotics smugglers.

According to the FIR registered by the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) in 2010, the company from Multan was allocated a quota of 6,500kg, while another firm from Islamabad, Danas Pvt Ltd, was allocated 2,500kg.

Besides Babar, ANF nominated Makhdoom Shahabuddin, former federal minister for textile industries, Ali Musa Gilani, son of former prime minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani, and then principal secretary Khushnood Akhtar Lashari along with over a dozen others in the case.

Babar’s counsel Abdul Rasheed Sheikh adopted before CNS Judge Akhtar Bahadur that his client was running the company in Multan and he got ephedrine quota approved from Islamabad and used it in Multan.

He said the ANF could not register FIR against Babar as the area of Multan where the ephedrine was allegedly misused did not fall under its jurisdiction.

He pointed out that earlier the same court in an identical matter had refused to proceed with the matter where ANF Rawalpindi had submitted the challan against the owner of Lahore-based Friends Pharmaceutical Company. He requested the court to return the challan to ANF as it did in the case of Friends pharma. CNS judge after hearing the arguments issued notice to the ANF and adjourned the proceedings till September 30.

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2014