KARACHI, June 16: An accountability court put off on Tuesday the hearing of a corruption reference against a former deputy director of the Federal Investigation Agency and two others due to absence of the defence counsel.
Judge Qaiser Iqbal of the AC-1, who is also the administrative judge of all ACs in Karachi, fixed June 26 for the indictment of Chaudhry Mohammed Sharif, ex-deputy director, Mohammed Hanif, an FIA constable, and Mukhtar Ahmed, domestic servant of Mr Sharif, in the case.
The three, who were earlier convicted and sentenced to a 14- year term by the then judge of the AC, are now being re-tried on the orders of the Sindh High Court. Chaudhry Sharif requested the court to adjourn the indictment of the all three accused as they are yet to engage defence counsel.
The former FIA official, who was released on parole by the Jamali government, and the two co-accused had been convicted by Judge Qamaruddin Bohra, the then presiding officer of the AC-1. The judge had also imposed a fine of Rs100 million on Chaudhry Sharif.
The accused later moved an appeal against the trial court judgment in the Sindh High Court, which remanded back the case for a retrial. Chaudhry Sharif, who was taken into custody a little after the October 12 military takeover, is being prosecuted for amassing huge wealth "through illegal and corrupt means and beyond known and declared sources".
The former FIA deputy director of immigration and anti- smuggling wing, who started his carrier as a police constable in 1961, was charged with purchasing the following properties in the names of his family members and other associates:
1. Bungalow No. 104, 2nd Commercial Street, Phase-IV, Defence Housing Authority, Karachi
2. Open plot No. 105, 2nd Commercial Street, Phase-IV, DHA
3. Bungalow No 64/1 Khayaban-i-Bahria, Phase-V Extension, DHA
4. Building/plot No. 4-E, Badar Commercial Street No. 8, Phase-V Extension, DHA
5. Plot No. 107/C, Khayaban-e-Shaheen, Phase VIII, DHA
6. Plot No. 82/1, 31st Street, Phase V Extension, DHA
7. Plot No. C/59-C, Al-Murtaza Commercial lane, Phase-VIII, DHA
8. Plot No. S-35, 12th lane Phase-IV, DHA
9. Plot No. 16/C, Iqbal Commercial lane No. 4, Phase-VIII, DHA
10. plot No. 89/C, Tipu Sultan Lane No. 2, Phase-VIII, DHA
11. Karmanwala House, Samudri and
12. agriculture land measuring 119 canals, one marla in chak No. 667 G.B. Mauza Sharifabad, Tehsil Samundri
The FIA investigation team, headed by deputy director Haji Abdul Qadir and comprising M. A. Tatari and Sikander Baloch, estimated the market value of the above properties at over Rs40 million.
Besides, the principal accused was charged with holding 96 per cent paid-up shares of Zarak Textile Mills (Pvt) Ltd, 100 per cent shares of Marman Pharma (Pvt) Ltd and huge shares in Kehkashan Textile Mills Ltd.
The investigation team also detected certain expenditures made by the former public servants which include huge bills of cellular phones. It was revealed in the investigation that Chaudhry Sharif used six mobile phone numbers during 1997 and 1999.
The total amount of these phone bills was over Rs1.46 million. The former FIA official was also charged with spending over one million rupees on his domestic and international travelling by air during the period from 1997 to 1999.