Former federal minister and PPP Karachi president Dr Asim Hussain, while talking to media after appearing before an accountability court on Wednesday, said what happened with him was a classic example of “bad law”. This is not the way to deal with white collar crimes across the world.
Commenting on the recent ouster of Nawaz Sharif, Dr Hussain said that Article 62, 63 of the Constitution is a very vague term. He also asked for making changes to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) law aimed at targeting the white collar crimes.
He also congratulated the newly elected Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on becoming the head of the the government.
Dr Hussain, who was serving as chairman of the Sindh Higher Education Commission, was picked up by Rangers personnel on Aug 26, 2015, for his alleged involvement in offences falling within the ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
He remained in Rangers’ preventive detention for 90 days before being handed over to police in a case registered against him and others for allegedly treating and harbouring suspected terrorists, political militants and gangsters at his hospital on the request of Rauf Siddiqui, Wasim Akhtar and Saleem Shahzad of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM); Pak Sarzameen Party president Anis Kaimkhani; PPP’s Abdul Qadir Patel, and Pasban’s Usman Moazzam.
Later, NAB obtained his custody for interrogation and investigation into his alleged involvement in corruption. One of the two corruption cases pertained to causing loss of Rs462.5 billion by allegedly misusing his powers, while the other related to award of processing gas from five fields in lower Sindh without conducting an open auction, incurring a huge loss of Rs17.34bn to the national exchequer.
The close aide of Asif Zardari was released from a sub-jail set up for him at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre on March 31 after a little over 19 months in detention.
He was granted bail in two corruption references filed by NAB for allegedly causing huge losses to the national exchequer through corrupt practices.
