IFTIKHAR CHAUDRY-SON ARSLAN CHAHUDRY

Supreme Court on Jang Group and Dr Arsalan Iftikhar Case (Urdu)

ARSALAN IFTIKHAR THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING CJ IFTIKHAR AHMAD CHAHUDRY

LAHORE: According to reliable sources, Dr Arsalan Iftikhar Chaudhry was using the official address of Chief Justice House, Islamabad, for commercial purposes.

He was even using this address for his company with the name and style F.E.A. (Pvt) Ltd. Huge amounts, reportedly over Rs 300 million, were deposited in the account of this company owned by Arsalan Iftikhar with the correspondence address of Chief Justice House. It is a matter of concern that how an account could be opened in the name of a private limited company with the address of Chief Justice House.

This is a clear violation of Know Your Customers (KYC) instructions of the State Bank of Pakistan, which are required to be religiously followed by all banks and financial institutions of the country. Legally and morally, it cannot be comprehended as to how the official residence of the Chief Justice of Pakistan can be used for commercial deals.

The huge amounts which reportedly were credited as a matter of routine since 2009 in the accounts of Arsalan Iftikhar also raises the question as to why not a single Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) was ever generated. Bankers are under a legal obligation to report all unusual or large transactions to NAB as well as Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) of the State Bank of Pakistan, which deal with anti-money laundering matters. 

Under ordinary circumstances, it is the normal practice for the banks to immediately report to the State Bank of Pakistan any transaction that is not commensurate with the financial status of the account holder. In the Arsalan Iftikhar case, it has been widely reported that the present net worth of the Chief Justice’s son is Rs 900 million. It is however relevant to note that until 2007, he was merely a Grade-17 government officer who was totally dependent on his salary or his father. However, no report was ever sent to the State Bank of Pakistan about the sudden surge and accretion in Arsalan Iftikhar’s accounts. This was indeed a phenomenal growth and extremely rare. 

This non-reporting can either be considered as a great favour to Arsalan by the bankers or they were afraid because the address given for these accounts was the official residence of the Chief Justice of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

Against this backdrop, a new case is likely to emerge under the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2010 unless the State Bank, FIA, NAB and other agencies opt to keep their eyes shut for obvious reasons. Whether or not the Supreme Court of Pakistan will take suo motu notice of such acts of Arsalan will be seen in the coming days, especially when the criminal inquiry against him has come to a grinding halt on the orders of the apex court. The bankers nevertheless have violated anti-money laundering laws and may now face penal consequences for ignoring Arsalan’s accounts. Will anyone touch Arsalan? Only the Supreme Court can tell.

Stop Wasting Our Time!

For the past 65 years, Pakistan has been living on the edge, literally. The politicians as well as the heads of Armed Forces with political aspirations have ruled the country anyway which they desired, and that has unsettled the Quaid’s country, sending it backwards instead of forward. These days, the armed forces have taken a backseat with the judiciary emerging as the second force which is steering the country into oblivion, for reasons known only to those who matter.

Like every country needs a messiah once in a while, we got one in Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, or he was portrayed as one. He promised to drive the evils away and mould the nation the way our forefathers wanted it to be only to settle his personal scores. He summoned actress Atiqa Odho to the court for the infamous case where she was charged for carrying two bottles of liquor as if the rest of the country carries Zam Zam with them. The reason behind this summon was the fact that Ms Odho supported the ideology of former President Pervez Musharraf, who dismissed Iftikhar Chaudhry in the first place.

Besides the Atiqa Odho saga, we have the case of Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry’s son Dr Arsalan Iftikhar who has been proved guilty by renowned politician Faisal Raza Abidi on television programs. It should be noted here that the doctor’s corruption was behind President Musharraf’s decision to axe the CJ in the first place, meaning there is more than meets the eye. Although Dr Arsalan claims innocently that since he doesn’t look like a corrupt person, he is most likely not one but the claims and proofs of Faisal Raza Abidi are not only spot on but also demand attention. He is constantly asking the Chief Justice to summon him but he has not received one, may be because his proofs might seal the case against the son of the gun!

And then there is the case of the letter to the Swiss courts regarding the cases against the President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari who has immunity in the country. Everyone knows that the President is corrupt, everybody believes that the letter would not be written but even then the courts have directed all their attention to a matter that doesn’t seem to be solved any sooner. Had they done that after the country was rid of corrupt politicians, after all those politicians with fake degrees were disbarred from taking part in future elections, after the energy problems facing the country was solved, after the law and order situation improved in the country and/or after the institutions were handed over to able leaders instead of handpicked influential people, it would have seemed a step in the right direction. But since there are far more important matters that demand the Court’s attention, diverting it to one lost cause makes us wonder whether their own intentions are pure or not.

The matter of writing a letter to the Swiss Court may be resolved soon, the NRO case might get a verdict in the coming future or even Dr Arsalan Iftikhar may be cleared of all charges against him, but that doesn’t mean the people of Pakistan would start trusting the courts. They would want the Men in Black to be answerable to them for wasting their time on trivial matters instead of the pivotal issues that still stand and grow bigger!

Pakistani Don

Dr Arsalan used CJP House’s address for commercial deals Friday, August 03, 2012  LAHORE: According to reliable sources, Dr Arsalan Iftikhar Chaudhry was using the official address of Chief Justice House, Islamabad, for commercial purposes. He was even using this address for his company with the name and style F.E.A. (Pvt) Ltd. Huge amounts, reportedly over Rs 300 million, were deposited in the account of this company owned by Arsalan Iftikhar with the correspondence address of Chief Justice House. It is a matter of concern that how an account could be opened in the name of a private limited company with the address of Chief Justice House. This is a clear violation of Know Your Customers (KYC) instructions of the State Bank of Pakistan, which are required to be religiously followed by all banks and financial institutions of the country. Legally and morally, it cannot be comprehended as to how the official residence of the Chief Justice of Pakistan can be used for commercial deals. The huge amounts which reportedly were credited as a matter of routine since 2009 in the accounts of Arsalan Iftikhar also raises the question as to why not a single Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) was ever generated. Bankers are under a legal obligation to report all unusual or large transactions to NAB as well as Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) of the State Bank of Pakistan, which deal with anti-money laundering matters. Under ordinary circumstances, it is the normal practice for the banks to immediately report to the State Bank of Pakistan any transaction that is not commensurate with the financial status of the account holder. In the Arsalan Iftikhar case, it has been widely reported that the present net worth of the Chief Justice’s son is Rs 900 million. It is however relevant to note that until 2007, he was merely a Grade-17 government officer who was totally dependent on his salary or his father. However, no report was ever sent to the State Bank of Pakistan about the sudden surge and accretion in Arsalan Iftikhar’s accounts. This was indeed a phenomenal growth and extremely rare. This non-reporting can either be considered as a great favour to Arsalan by the bankers or they were afraid because the address given for these accounts was the official residence of the Chief Justice of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Against this backdrop, a new case is likely to emerge under the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2010 unless the State Bank, FIA, NAB and other agencies opt to keep their eyes shut for obvious reasons. Whether or not the Supreme Court of Pakistan will take suo motu notice of such acts of Arsalan will be seen in the coming days, especially when the criminal inquiry against him has come to a grinding halt on the orders of the apex court. The bankers nevertheless have violated anti-money laundering laws and may now face penal consequences for ignoring Arsalan’s accounts. Will anyone touch Arsalan? Only the Supreme Court can tell. 

SUPREME COURT AND DR ARSLAN IFTIKHAR CASE

Supreme Court on Jang Group and Dr Arsalan Iftikhar Case (English)

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JUSTICE IFTIKHAR AHMAD CHOUDRY

Deposed chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry is still present there with full might, running from pillar to post, telling everyone as how crucial the justice is and the lawyers movement is still present there with slogans, chantings and now threats. That is what happens when movements become revolution after politicos start deceiving people and turn their backs after getting their vested interests fulfilled.
Now a strong bar, backing of political parties and support of the common people was necessary to ensure the independence of the judiciary in the country. It surely is the sole factor, the absence of which made the military adventurers draw legitimacy from the courts in 1958, 1977 and 1999.
Pakistanis must support judiciary, its stand and the demands to restore the chief justice to his due designation and to make the apex court respectable again. One also wonders about the justice Dogar as really the man hasn’t got any shred of self-dignity as he is being ridiculed and insulted from everywhere?
Ejaz Afzal, a deposed judge of the Peshawar High Court, in his address has rightly said that it was neither “A” nor “B” but it was the historical “No” of deposed chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry which proved to be a catalyst of change for the national history.