The Federal Constitutional Court, hearing the long-pending Employees’ Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) corruption case, has directed all concerned parties to submit a workable proposal for resolving the dispute by the next hearing so that the matter, pending for more than a decade, may be brought to a logical conclusion.
A two-member bench headed by Chief Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan heard the case on Wednesday. During the proceedings, the Chief Justice remarked that “we are all participants in the sins and virtues of the EOBI case” and questioned what practical solution could be found for a matter that has remained pending since 2013.
Barrister Ali Zafar submitted that the case originated from a suo motu notice taken by the Supreme Court regarding the alleged purchase of 18 properties by EOBI at prices several times higher than their actual market value. He informed the Court that, pursuant to judicial directions, market valuations of the properties had also been conducted.
According to Barrister Ali Zafar, a plot located on Mall Road, Lahore, had been purchased for Rs790 million, whereas experts assessed its actual value at Rs540 million at the relevant time. He further stated that the value of the same property had since appreciated and was now estimated at approximately Rs2.3 billion.
He told the Court that EOBI was seeking to retain certain properties while recovering money in lieu of others. However, his client was facing pressure to both return the plot and repay the allegedly excessive amount received in the transaction.