PHC issues non-bailable arrest warrants for official

Remand of three irrigation project officials
extended; senior cops put on notice in forced disappearance case

PESHAWAR: The accountability court on Monday issued non-bailable arrest warrant for Iftikhar Rahim, additional secretary, Public Accounts Committee, National Assembly, for failing to appear in a reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for alleged misuse of authority and corrupt practices.

The accountability court judge Muhammad Asim Imam issued the non-bailable arrest warrant against Iftikhar Rahim, former secretary of the Workers Welfare Fund and currently serving as additional secretary, Public Accounts Committee, National Assembly, after he remained absent from the case.

The court ordered the police to ensure his presence in the court on February 24 when the next hearing into the case would take place.The NAB prosecutor said the NAB KP had filed the reference against Iftikhar Rahim after approval of the NAB chairman. He said when the reference was filed the official was serving as secretary of Workers Welfare Fund.

Iftikhar Rahim was accused of misusing authority and indulging in corrupt practices over the release of funds to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Workers Welfare Board for procurement of equipment.

During investigation into the case, Iftikhar Rahim on October 1, 2015 got interim pre-arrest bail from the Peshawar High Court in a case of misuse of authority.A bench comprising Justice Nisar Hussain and Justice Mussarat Hilali had granted interim bail to Iftikhar Rahim when he challenged the issuance of a ‘call-up notice’ to him by the NAB asking him to appear before it in the case.

Meanwhile, the same court extended the remand of the three arrested officials of an irrigation project for further seven days to the NAB Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.The NAB KP had arrested Olas Khan, project director (BPS-20), Sahibzada Alamgir Khan and Allah Bakhsh, regional deputy project directors (BPS-19) of the project. It claimed they were involved in misuse of authority and corrupt practices and had caused over Rs170 million losses to the exchequer.

When they were produced before the court after three days remand, the NAB senior prosecutor Azeem Dad requested the court for further remand of the accused to undergo interrogation.

The NAB claimed the federal government in collaboration with the provincial government had initiated a project of more than Rs2 billion titled “Water Conservation and Productivity Enhancement through High Efficiency Irrigation system in Pakistan” (Drip irrigation system) for the purpose of increasing agriculture production by using available irrigation water efficiently during 2007-2012.

“During the course of inquiry, it came to surface that 182 such schemes worth Rs320 million were approved. These included 158 initiated in 15 districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” the NAB stated.

It noted that most of the schemes were undertaken in Bannu and Lakki Marwat districts.It added that only five schemes were found functional while the rest were non-functional.“The accused in connivance with each other released payments for bogus schemes and also for incomplete schemes,” the NAB alleged.

Meanwhile, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday put on notice top officials of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Department for forced disappearance of a citizen from the prison’s premises.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Lal Jan Khattak issued the notice to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa inspector general of police (IGP), deputy inspector general of police (DIG) Mardan and station house officer of the relevant police station over the missing of a citizen from the Mardan prison.

The bench issued the notice in a habeas corpus petition filed by Sajjad alias Farman through his lawyer Farooq Afridi. The lawyer informed the bench that his client was interned in Mardan Prison in a criminal case. He submitted that the petitioner secured his release on bail from a subordinate court.

The lawyer contended that when the prison’s authorities on February 6 released him, the station house officer Naeem Khan re-arrested him from the jail premises in the presence of his relatives. The counsel informed the bench that his whereabouts remained unknown to the family members after his arrest.