Daily Times

Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Bashir Memon apprised the Supreme Court on Wednesday that the agency had traced 2,700 properties owned by overseas Pakistanis, a private TV channel reported.

As a three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar began hearing the suo motu case regarding assets owned by Pakistani nationals in foreign countries, Attorney General (AG) Khalid Javed presented a report in the court. He informed the court that the United Kingdom and Pakistan have launched a partnership which aims to track corruption and restart the bilateral transfer of prisoners. The chief justice instructed the attorney general to produce a report regarding Pakistanis who own 15-20 assets in foreign countries.

The governor of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Tariq Bajwa then informed the court that 550 Pakistanis own properties abroad. The top judge then observed that he was aware that Pakistanis own properties worth Rs 1, 000 billion in Dubai. “Out of the 550 people who own these properties, we can summon 15 or 20 individuals. But we won’t force anyone,” he remarked. “All individuals will be dealt with in accordance with Article 4 of the constitution. If there is a possibility that the court’s order can spread fear, the government should act then. We are only trying to resolve the matter voluntarily,” he noted. The top judge expressed his displeasure at the failure of authorities to stop the hundi-hawala business. “The markets are full of smuggled goods. Why have we been unable to stop smuggling?” Justice Nisar asked the attorney general. Responding to the chief justice, the AG remarked that laws to stop smuggling and hundi-hawala are being framed for the very first time. He informed the court that 44 agents involved in the hundi-hawala business were recently arrested and Rs 119 million seized from them.

According to the attorney general, operations will be conducted soon in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar, and Faisalabad. “The government has formed a task force which is quickly taking steps in this regard,” he said.

The FIA DG said that the government’s ownership in this matter comes through the task force’s operations. Justice Nisar responded, “Give the entire ownership to the government. When did we say we wanted ownership? Just provide us with the list of people who laundered money from Pakistan.”

The chief justice remarked that according to Section 183 of Article 4 of the constitution, action against money launderers should be taken in the public’s best interest. As the hearing proceeded, the AG informed the court that a man arrested in the United Kingdom had transferred 250 million dollars through Dubai to the country. He further noted that the agreement with the UK will help crack down on the illegal transfer of money. As DG FIA requested the apex court to grant a month’s time for further operations, the court gave 15 days to the agency to proceed with its crackdown on the illegal transfer of money out of Pakistan.

Published in Daily Times, September 20^th 2018.