The Lahore High Court registrar has fixed the hearing of former federal minister and PML-Q leader Moonis Elahi’s petition seeking quashing of the money laundering case filed against him by the Federal Investigation Agency. According to the cause list issued by the LHC registrar office on Saturday, Justice Asjad Javed Gharal will hear Moonis’ petition on Oct 3. The court has summoned lawyers from both parties for their final arguments. Advocate Muhammad Amjad Pervaiz would appear before the court on behalf of the petitioner. While, Deputy Attorney General Asad Ali Bajwa would represent the federal government. The FIA DG and investigating officer have been made respondents in the petition. It is stated in the petition that the FIA’s money laundering case against Moonis was result of the political engineering as government wanted to hold a media trial of the PML-Q leader.

The NAB law supersedes all criminal laws and the bureau has already given Moonis the clean- chit in these allegations, it added. The petition further stated that no bank or account holder registered any complaint against Moonis in the FIA, nor did the investigation agency have any proof against the former federal minister of money laundering, corruption, corrupt practices and abuse of authority. The petitioner said that the Rahim Yar Khan Sugar Mills was set up in 2007 and the Anti-Money Laundering Act was promulgated in 2010, which means that the law was not applicable to the past. The court was implored to order for the dismissal of the case against the petitioner and also stop the FIA from holding any further investigation or taking any punitive action till the final judgement of the LHC. The petitioner also requested the court to stop the federal agency from harassing him in this case.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP