FIA’s Sher Shah bridge case transferred to Islamabad

KARACHI: A case registered by FIA Karachi against the former chairman of the National Highway Authority (NHA) has been transferred to Islamabad.

According to official documents, copies of which are available with The News, FIA DG Rai Tahir ordered the transfer of the case from FIA Karachi to FIA Islamabad on compassionate grounds at the request of accused persons.

The case, based on an incident which occurred in November 2007, was registered against NHA’s former chairman Major General Farrukh Javed (retd), former member of Planning Raja Nosherwan, NHA’s former project director Yousaf Barakzai and the owners of a construction company.

In November 2007, a bridge constructed by National Highway Authority (NHA) collapsed in the Sher Shah area of Karachi, killing six persons. The case regarding the incident was registered at FIA’s Corporate Crime Circle (CCC) in Karachi. An inquiry was initiated on June 10, 2016 by FIA Karachi’s Corporate Crime Circle and after seven years, in April 2022, an FIR was registered against Javed, Nosherwan, Barakzai, owners of construction company M/s ECIL Khalid Mirza and Naveed Mirza, who constructed the bridge and Nisar Ahmed, the owner of M/s Paracha Textile Mill.

The FIR stated that the officers of the NHA had abused their official positions and in connivance with the management of the construction company were responsible for the deaths of six persons. They had caused wrongful pecuniary loss to the national exchequer. It also stated that the officers had criminal intention as they had continued to construct the Sher Shah Bridge despite knowing about faults in the design of the flyover. The FIR further added that M/s ECIL had prepared a faulty design and the NHA had approved its construction.

The bridge collapsed due to criminal negligence, the FIR added. FIA concluded that the officers had caused a loss of Rs472.185 million to NHA and national exchequer. The FIR was registered on April 12, 2022 by Mehwish Iftikhar, a sub-inspector of FIA Corporate Crime Circle, Karachi.

Rai Tahir was posted as DG on April 20, 2022 and on April 25, 2022 he ordered the transfer of the case to Islamabad on the request of accused persons on compassionate grounds.