TDAP case hearing adjourned till Aug 25 as state attorney fails to show up

By our correspondents

July 22, 2016

Karachi

The Federal Anti-Corruption Court (FACC) has adjourned the hearing in the cases against former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and others pertaining to the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) scam till August 25. The hearing in these cases was adjourned due to the absence of the state attorney.

Former prime minister and a leader of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Yousuf Raza Gilani, along with other functionaries of the then government is facing around 26 cases pertaining to the charges of corruption of millions of rupees. Out of 26 cases, the former premier has been nominated as co-accused in only three cases.

In the other cases, he is being treated as the main accused, alleged to be involved in corruption.

Gilani was present in the court at the time of hearing and after the proceedings and while talking to the media, he said that he was very glad on the recovery of the son of the Sindh High Court chief justice after one month of his kidnapping. Former federal law minister, Farooq H Naik, who is the attorney for Gilani, said that the lawyers’ community had also played an important role by raising strong voice for the recovery of Awais Ali Shah.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had initiated an investigation against Yousuf Raza Gilani, Abid Javed Akbar, Tariq Iqbal Puri, Javed Anwar Khan and Abdul Karim Daudpota and others for their alleged involvement in the formation of bogus companies and other corrupt practices that caused a great loss to the national exchequer.

The FIA has submitted charge-sheets in different cases against the accused, raising the number of cases filed against the PPP leader in the financial scam, known as “Scam 11”.

The PPP leader, along with some former and serving officials of the TDAP and some private individuals, had been accused of being involved in approving and disbursing fraudulent trade subsidies worth millions of rupees to several fake companies through fictitious claims and backdated cheques.