KARACHI: An accountability court remanded on Wednesday two former chairmen of the Fishermen Cooperative Society (FCS) and six others to prison in a corruption reference.

The National Accounta­bility Bureau had filed a reference in January against then FCS chairmen Dr Nisar Ahmed Jan Memon alias Nisar Morai and Abdul Saeed Khan, former FCS vice chairman Sultan Qamar Siddiqui and 10 other officials and contractors for allegedly misusing authority, embezzling funds, making illegal appointments and awarding fake contracts during 2014-15, causing a loss of over Rs343 million.

NAB arrested the former chairmen, vice chairman, four other former officials of the FCS and a contractor on Tuesday after a bench of the Sindh High Court dismissed their bail applications.

NAB officials produced the suspects before the judge of accountability court-I Rashida Asad and the court sent them to prison on judicial remand till April 23.

According to the reference, Nisar Morai was appointed as director of the FCS in December 2013. He took over as chairman in January 2014 and remained head of the FCS till June 2015. He was also holding another public office as medical officer (BS-18) in the health department and had been drawing salary till May 2015.

It further maintained that Mr Morai allegedly made 343 illegal appointments without following due process and procedure and misappropriated funds.

Saeed Khan also allegedly made 155 illegal appointments and Sultan Siddiqui got his father-in-law, brother-in-law and other relatives appointed in the FCS, it added. NAB further alleged in the reference that these officials in collusion with others also embezzled funds by awarding fake contracts to counterfeit companies.

Dr Morai, believed to be an important figure of the PPP Sindh, was appointed chief of the FCS in a controversial manner in January 2014 and he was mysteriously ‘disappeared’ soon after the Rangers had detained Sultan Qamar and others in June 2014. Later, Mr Siddiqui, along with his brother and an aide, were named in the Safoora Goth bus carnage case for allegedly providing arms to assailants. However, a military court acquitted them. Eventually, the Rangers picked up Mr Morai in March 2016 and detained him under 90-day preventive detention for questioning. After three months, he was handed over to police for his alleged involvement in the murder of former chairman of the Pakistan Steel Mills, Sajjad Hussain. Later, he was released on bail while the trial is still pending before a sessions court.

Witness fails to identify accused

An eyewitness remained unable on Wednesday to identify two accused before an ATC in the murder of a police officer. Zafar Ali alias Sain and Obaid alias Aabi have been charged for their alleged involvement in a suicide attack on the motorcade of Superintendent of Police Moham­med Aslam Khan, better known as Chaudhry Aslam, on the Lyari Express­way in January 2014 in which the SP and his two police guards were killed.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2018