KARACHI, June 21: The Sindh High Court issued notices to the Federal Investigation Agency and a federal government counsel on Tuesday in a writ petition moved by former MNA Hakim Ali Zardari for quashment of proceedings in a banking offences case registered against him by the FIA in 1997. According to the FIR in the case, Mr Zardari obtained a loan of Rs100,000 from the Commerce Bank, which was later merged into the United Bank Limited, and pledged his shares for its repayment. He sold the pledged shares subsequently in violation of the law.

Mr Zardari said in his petition, filed through Advocate Farooq H. Naek, that the loan was taken in 1973. No shares were pledged and sold as alleged, though there was a dispute over the amount repayable. The UBL instituted a recovery suit, which was disposed of by a consent decree in 1979. The decree was satisfied by him.

The petitioner said no criminal case could be registered on the basis of a compounded civil dispute 18 years after the transaction. No offence in respect of banks has been committed by him and the registration of the case was mala fide. The proceedings, he said, were liable to be quashed.

A bench comprising Justices M. Mujibullah Siddiqui and Maqbool Baqar directed that notices be issued to the respondent agency and a federal attorney for June 27.

NOTICE TO NAB: Another bench comprising Justices Sarmad Jalal Osmany and Amir Hani Muslim issued the National Accountability Bureau a notice for June 28 in a writ petition seeking quashment of proceedings against Ms Ghousia Mohammadi in the Alliance Motors reference. She is accused of siphoning off deposits made by investors in the Alliance Motors and T.J. Ebrahim and Company as a director of Marina Shipping Company (Pvt) Limited.