Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Customs Department has presented evidence in court that shows that two owners of bootlegger firm Sun Diplomatic Bonded Ware House are Muslims who declared themselves non-Muslim for the sake of their business. Islamabad High Court has started the hearing against the two brothers, Aamir Malik and Ishtiaq Ahmed who got a license to deal in wine by expressing themselves non Muslims. Both have allegedly concealed their religion and showed themselves as Qadyanis to obtain liquor licenses. They also stand accused of evading tax of Rs 980 million.

The judge of Islamabad High Court Justice Noor-ul-Haq Qureshi had already ordered to dispose off the case against the culprits as they had submitted an affidavit in the court that they were non Muslims. But the Customs Department had filed an appeal against the decision of single bench in Intra Court in which it was pleaded that the court should review its verdict so that a tax evasion case could be registered.

After the news was published in Daily Times, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on the orders of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has also commenced action against the owners of Sun Diplomatic Bonded Ware House. The documents of Customs Department revealed that the license for trading the whiskey was issued to Malik Muhammad Iqbal, son of Malik Maratib Ali on the orders of Prime Minister’s House in 2004. Now when the case was opened by the court, the real allottee of the license, Iqbal had submitted an affidavit in the court in which he claims that the original license was issued to him. He was Qadyani by religion.

The license remained suspended for a decade (from 2004 to 2014) as Malik Iqbal proceeded abroad and could not import wine on this license during that period. The two brothers Aamir Malik and Ishtiaq Ahmed from Tarlai Kalan, a suburb of the federal capital, transferred the license to their name by declaring themselves Qadyanis and started the business of importing wine by setting up a company called Sun Diplomatic Bonded Ware House on the basis of the license.

After the report was published, a wave of anxiety washed among the black sheep present in the Customs Department and they registered a case against both offenders in haste. Aamir Malik and Ishtiaq Ahmed had challenged the case against them in the court through senior lawyer Hamid Khan and submitted an affidavit in the court that they were non Muslims and their license should be restored.