PHC denies bail to secretary industries

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday denied bail to the provincial secretary Industries, Sajid Khan Jadoon, in a case of misuse of authority and corruption.
Justice Irshad Qaiser announced the decision that had been reserved a week ago by a division bench. Justice Syed Afsar Shah was the second judge on the bench.
The bench had reserved decision after hearing arguments from both sides. The petitioner’s counsel argued that the court had already granted interim bail to several suspects arrested by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission.
He submitted that in the absence of the notification of its establishment, every action taken by the commission was illegal including the arrests made by it in different cases.Deputy Prosecutor General of the Ehtesab Commission Zahid Aman said the petitioner had also served as secretary of the Excise and Taxation Department.
He added that he was arrested on August 26 on the charges of misappropriation of funds and had committed illegalities in purchase of weapons, wireless sets, bulletproof jackets and other procurements when he was the secretary of Excise and Taxation Department.
Zahid Aman claimed that the suspect was also involved in illegal retention of vehicles confiscated by the Excise and Taxation Department against rules and allotments of those vehicles to the people of his choice and thus misusing his authority with malafide intentions.
He said evidence on record showed the involvement of the suspect in the offence.In an official statement after the arrest, the Ehtesab Commission claimed that the secretary Industries was arrested for his involvement in illegal purchase of weapons, wireless sets, sub-standard bullet-proof jackets and vehicles conversion/procurement resulting in loss of millions of rupees to the exchequer.
It said that Sajid Jadoon as secretary Excise and Taxation was found involved in illegal retention of the confiscated vehicles in the department against the rules and regulations. It added that he allotted the vehicles to the people of his choice and thus misused his authority with malafide intention.
The commission had also arrested Muhammad Khalid, an in-charge of the provincial warehouse of Excise and Taxation Department, and Ijlal Babar, a protocol officer, of the same department. They were charged with graft and corrupt practices under Section 23 of the Ehtesab Act 2014.
They were charged with illegally issuing seized vehicles from the warehouse and embezzling millions of rupees in purchase of arms and bulletproof jackets for the department.
An official of the commission said that the arrest of Muhammad Khalid and Ijlal Babar and their investigation apparently provided enough evidence to apprehend Sajid Jadoon, a former secretary of the Excise and Taxation Department.