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Tuesday, September 04, 2012
Riaz to challenge one-member commission in Arsalan caseBy Hasnaat Malik
ISLAMABAD: Property tycoon Malik Riaz on Monday decided to challenge the one-member commission, consisting of Federal Tax Ombudsman Dr Shoaib Suddle, to investigate Rs 342 million business deal between him and Arsalan Iftikhar in view of the Supreme Court’s August 30 decision.
Riaz’s counsel Zahid Bukhari confirmed that they had decided to challenge the SC’s August 30 decision. The counsel told Daily Times that he was busy in drafting a review petition against the court’s decision, adding that he would file it in the court this week.
Regarding his client’s appearance before the commission, he said that Riaz would decide after the court’s response on his review petition.
Raising objections over the impartiality of Dr Shoaib Suddle, Bukhari said that Suddle had close relations with the chief justice of Pakistan’s (CJP) family. He claimed that Dr Suddle had participated in various functions arranged by the CJP. The counsel also said that the court’s decision was in violation of articles 8, 9 and 25 of the constitution.
Meanwhile, it has been learnt that the legal team of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s son Ali Musa Gilani is also considering to move a petition to transfer the investigation of Rs 7 billion ephedrine scandal case from the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) to another agency. In Arsalan case, the Supreme Court barred the National Accountability Bureau from investigation and formed the one-member committee. The court had asked NAB to hand over the entire record of the case to the commission.
Chaudhry Faisal Hussain, a member of Musa’s legal team, said that they were considering to approach the SC for getting same remedy as it had given to Arsalan Iftikhar, adding that both cases were of similar nature.
Attorney General Irfan Qadir has also opposed the formation of the one-member commission and said that the SC should have sought a prior consent from the office of the FTO, an office that enjoys a status equivalent to that of a judge.
Talking about the court’s remarks on NAB, renowned lawyer Tariq Mahmood questioned that how could the court term NAB biased, when the latter had not started proceedings so far.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk