ISLAMABAD / LAHORE:
The government on Monday suspended Zafar Hussain Qureshi, an Additional Director General of the Federal Investigation Agency who was investigating the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) financial scam in which the elder son of federal minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi is the main accused.Mr Qureshi was reinstated in the FIA after the Supreme Court suspended on Friday the notification regarding his transfer to the National Police Foundation. The Supreme Court had ordered bringing back Mr Qureshi to the NICL investigations – the assignment from which he was removed in April this year, apparently to appease PML-Q leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi.
The PML-Q later joined the federal government in May. A preliminary inquiry has found Chaudhry Moonis Elahi, who is a member of the Punjab Assembly, involved in making money through shady deals made in the NICL.
According to the notification, signed by a deputy secretary of the interior division, Mr Qureshi was suspended for giving a television interview on Saturday. The order cited rule 9 of the Government Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) rules for the action.
The interior ministry asked Mr Qureshi to explain his position for giving statements in the media on July 2. But the official did not reply to the ministry’s query.
“You had been given a fair chance of rendering an explanation within 24 hours on receipt of the letter and it was made abundantly clear that failing this it shall be presumed that you have no explanation to offer and you should render yourself liable to be proceeded against under the rules,” the order said.
The interior ministry also accused Mr Qureshi of releasing the content of the letter to the media and termed his action a “sheer violation” of the provisions of Rules 18 and 22 of the Government Servants (Conduct) Rules 1964.
Although the PPP government has repeatedly dithered on decisions of the Supreme Court, the suspension of Mr Qureshi could set off a head-on collision between the executive and the judiciary. “The issue has the potential to upset the judiciary,” commented an analyst.
According to sources in the prime minister’s secretariat, the decision to suspend Mr Qureshi was taken after a meeting earlier during the day between the prime minister and the Chaudhrys. Interior Minister Rehman Malik attended the meeting, too.
According to the sources, the government had assured PML-Q leaders that it would help secure the release of Mr Moonis Elahi once the party joined the ruling coalition.
Soon after his reinstatement as additional director general of FIA on Saturday, Mr Qureshi had written a letter to his boss – Director General Tahseen Anwar Shah – to restore the four officials of his team to their previous position (in Lahore) for their
‘utility’ in the NICL scam. These officers were: deputy director Javed Shah, assistant directors Mohammad Ahmed and Khalid Anees, and inspector Muhammad Sarwar.
The letter said: “The transfer of the officials in question is tantamount to violation of the Supreme Court’s orders. It shows mala fide intention and aims at creating hurdles in the investigation of the scam.”
BOSSES HIT BACK: According to sources, this letter annoyed Mr Qureshi’s bosses in the interior ministry who eventually struck back by getting him suspended.
Earlier, despite the Supreme Court’s rulings, Prime Minister Gilani had refused to reappoint Mr Qureshi as an investigation
officer into the NICL scam. The secretaries of the establishment and interior divisions, as well as the principal secretary to the prime minister, were served contempt of court notices for not complying with the court’s orders.
On July 1, the Supreme Court ordered cancellation of the transfer orders of Mr Qureshi from FIA to the National Police Foundation and directed him to complete the investigations into NICL scam.
The Supreme Court, in its July 1 decision, had described the progress made by Mr Qureshi as head of investigation into the NICL scam as remarkable, saying that an officer who had shown professionalism by bringing back looted money should not have been punished by taking him off the investigation.
In its order the bench also noted the government had acknowledged Mr Qureshi was an honest officer. He was able to bring back a huge amount of Rs1.74 billion, the bench observed.
Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq admitted that Mr Qureshi was an honest officer and had carried out the investigation
properly and successfully.
After suspending the notification, the court ordered the Director General of FIA to extend all assistance to Zafar Qureshi for investigating the cases registered in Lahore over the NICL scam.
According to sources, Interior Minister Rehman Malik had a meeting with him in Islamabad on Sunday and asked him to be ‘cooperative’.
Mr Qureshi’s work had led to the arrest of Moonis Elahi and he had Federal Commerce Minister Amin Fahim in his sights, too, over allegations that he had received Rs200 million in the NICL land deal in Dubai.
Mr Moonis has already been indicted after a challan submitted to the banking court. Amin Fahim’s case is pending with the Karachi wing of the FIA.
