Rana Sanaullah pleads innocence in drugs case

ISLAMABAD: Pleading innocence on the floor of the National Assembly, the PML-N senior leader Rana Sanaullah Khan on Friday demanded of the government to constitute judicial commission to find facts in drug smuggling case against him.

Holding copy of the HolyQuran, Rana Sanaullah said he is speaking under oath and will inform the House about all facts in the fake case in which he was implicated.

“I should face wrath of the Almighty Allah if I speak lie otherwise those who fabricated fake case against me and those who are hiding the truth should face the same fate,” he said. The PML-N leader said he had asked the Speaker to allow him to speak in the House but he was told the important bill was to be passed on Tuesday.

He asked the government to form a committee of the federal cabinet or constitute judicial commission for fact-finding. He also requested the Speaker to refer his statement to the standing committee concerned and seek a report from it.

“I am ready to present myself before any inquiry committee or any forum,” Rana Sanaullah said adding that he would not present any arguments if the authorities came up with much-talked about video in support of their allegations.

Speaking on floor of the Lower House for the first time since his release on bail on December 24, the former Punjab law minister described the case in detail, saying he wanted the case to become a part of the assembly record.

“I left my home in Faisalabad at 1:10pm to attend a party meeting in Lahore when the ANF arrested me as soon as I crossed Lahore toll plaza at 3.19pm. “I was taken into custody, kept in police station till 10:00am next morning,” he said.

The PML-N leader said the investigation officer namely Deputy Director Major Azizullah never met him or investigated him. “There were cameras installed in that police station and you can ask for the record if I was ever interrogated by the agency,” he said.

Rana Sanaullah said on next morning of his arrest, he came to know that 15 kilograms of heroin had been recovered from his vehicle. “Heroin must be of good quality but the same was brought from store of the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF),” he said.

He complained that challan against him was presented in the court without any investigation or evidence which is practice against the law. He also questioned if, according to ANF, he belongs to any international gang, whether any member of that gang was arrested.

He said it was his right to present facts before the House saying that as to why he should face the trial in a baseless case. “Somebody from the other side may face such trial in future if I am subjected to such trial,” he warned the opponents.

Responding to PML-N leader’s remarks, Minister for Communications Murad Saeed said that Rana Sanaullah had presented one side of the picture. He said that Anti-Narcotics Force is an independent and credible institution but regretted that the institution was targeted after the bail of Rana Sanaullah in the narcotics case.

He recalled that allegations of murder as well as connections with proscribed outfits against Rana Sanaullah were not levelled by PTI but the members of his own party.

He said the PTI believes in rule of law and justice and the Minister of State Shahryar Afridi will himself brief the House about the case of Rana Sanaullah at the next sitting. Saying that Rana Sanaullah spoke on oath while carrying a copy of the Holy Quran, Murad Saeed said that all the members of the House after their election, took oath on floor of the House. “As such every member speaks here on oath,” he said.