LAHORE: A Special Court (Central-I) on Friday granted a final opportunity to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit challan (charge sheet) in a case pertaining to suspicious bank transactions against former chief minister Parvez Elahi, his son Moonis and othermembers of his family.

Resuming the hearing, Judge Arif Khan Niazi asked the FIA legal team about the challan submission.

An FIA lawyer stated that the delay in filing the challan was due to a change of the investigation officer.

The judge noted that the non-submission of the challan was delaying the decision on Mr Elahi’s acquittal application.

The judge remarked that if the FIA failed to submit the challan, the court will proceed with a decision on the acquittal plea on the basis of the presented arguments.

Mr Elahi’s lawyer, Amir Saeed Rawn, submitted a request seeking exemption for his client from personal appearance due to health issues. The judge accepted the request.

The lawyer argued that the FIA already sought extensions three times but failed to provide evidence against Mr Elahi and his son Moonis.

He said the case was politically motivated with no substantial evidence against his client. He stated that Moonis Elahi had been wrongfully implicated and not a single allegation was proved against him. He also questioned the legality of the red warrants issued against Moonis.

He said if the prosecution had any evidence it should have been presented in the court.

The judge warned if the FIA failed to submit the challan by Aug 18, it will proceed according to the law.

In the case, the FIA alleged that the sons and the daughters-in-law of former chief minister Elahi committed money laundering through a low-cadre employee of the Punjab Assembly.

It said the suspects used bank accounts of Qaiser Iqbal Bhatti, a peon of the assembly, to launder money.

The agency said unexplained transactions of millions of rupees had been traced in the accounts of the peon and the children of Elahi. It alleged that the assets of the peon had been found beyond his known sources of income.

The FIA said the inquiry in question was not linked to any previous probe, as it had been initiated against a government servant, the assembly`s peon. Moonis has been declared a proclaimed offender in the case.

Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2025