ISLAMABAD: A deputy director of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) arrested on corruption charges on Tuesday moved the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking bail.

After hearing preliminary arguments on the petition of Iftikhar Ali Haideri, Justice Aamer Farooq issued notice to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the investigation officer of the case, Ehsan Qadir. The bail plea was filed by Babar Awan Advocate.

According to the case, officials of NAB caught Haideri red-handed while allegedly receiving Rs4 million bribe from the owner of Safa Gold Mall, Rana Abdul Qayyum.

On November 30, a joint team raided a restaurant on the fourth floor of the mall to arrest Haideri, who was called there by the owner of the mall to finalise a deal to put the record of the building’s lay-out plan ‘straight’.

In the petition, the counsel said the owner of the mall received illegal favour from Haideri and later in connivance with the investigation officer and NAB authorities got the official arrested.

Mr Awan alleged that the petitioner was arrested in a false and frivolous case. He said there was no evidence with the respondents to show Haideri had an interest in issuing a clearance certificate to the owner of the mall.

Qayyum was a defaulter of over Rs40.5 million up to 2013 to the CDA regarding outstanding payment for a plot located in F-7 Markaz, he said. The counsel said neither NAB had the powers to raid any place nor the case against the CDA official was registered by a proper investigation agency such as the police or the FIA.

Moreover, Mr Awan contended that Qayyum remained involved in a criminal activity in connivance with the Employees Old-Age Benefit Institution (EOBI) and caused a loss of more than Rs376 million to the EOBI.

He said that in 2013 Qayyum was arrested after the Supreme Court intervened in the matter by taking a suo motu notice. He was later released on bail.

He said the allegations against the petitioner were based on a cooked-up story. He said Haideri, a heart and diabetic patient, was in the illegal custody of NAB. He requested the court to release the accused on bail as he was no longer required for further investigations.

The court put off the matter till a date to be fixed by the registrar office.

Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2015