Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday warned loan defaulters either to pay 75 percent of total outstanding principal amount or the banking court would be asked to decide their cases on merit.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar was hearing a suo motu case on Rs 54 billion waived off loans.

The court directed loan defaulters to apprise the bench about the option they wished to opt by today (Wednesday).

The chief justice noted that under the Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) the court was trying to resolve the matter by paying 70 to 80 percent outstanding principal amount, but if someone wanted to adopt legal way then their cases would be sent to the banking court to decide them in six weeks.

He said that the recovery would be made as per the recommendations of the commission’s report. He said that the banking court would be asked to recover the mark-up as well. He said the properties of the loan defaulters would be attached subject to finalisation of their cases.

Khawaja Tariq Rahim, appearing for Punjab Industrial Development Board, stated that the outstanding loan against his client was Rs 46 million. He said if the settlement was made by paying 60 percent amount then his client was ready to pay it in three months.

The chief justice appreciated Khawaja Tariq Rahim’s proposal saying the court would not do injustice with anyone and would like the matter be resolved by reaching reasonable terms of reference.

He said instead of returning the recovered amount to the banks, it would be used for retiring debts. “We want to give better future to our children”, he added.

On June 3, 2011, the Supreme Court had constituted a three member Commission, headed by Justice (r) Syed Jamshed Ali, a former Supreme Court judge,

for recovery of written off loans from 1971 onward and to compile a report. The Commission in February 2013 submitted its report according to that Rs 87 billion were written off in 38 years (1971 to 2009).

The report stated that the commission could probe only 740 different cases. It had recommended that the 222 cases should be probed further as Rs 54 billion had been waived off in these cases.

Though the report found grave irregularities in loans given to politicians, civil and military bureaucracy, it could not get proofs about waiver on political basis, as bank officials concealed the facts because they were afraid of the influential persons. The bankers had given only business reasons for writing off the loans. The commission had recommended that the tribunals comprising on duty or retired judges of high courts should be set up for the recovery of amounts. The commission also proposed for legislation for the recovery of written off loans.

It had also recommended that action should also been take against the provincial credit committee. However, it gave the final authority to the apex court to deal with the matter.

Published in Daily Times, June 27^th 2018.