An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Karachi on Thursday remanded former federal minister Dr Asim Hussain into police custody for four days over allegations of corruption and facilitating terrorists at his private hospital.
Dr Asim was presented at the anti-terrorism court today under strict security.
The Sindh Rangers registered a case against Dr Asim at a North Nazimabad police station on Wednesday, soon after the expiry of the 90-day remand that the paramilitary force had obtained from an anti-terrorism court for interrogation after his arrest in August.
Dr. Asim was taken into custody on August 26 under Section 11-EEEE of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997, and a joint interrogation team was formed after getting approval from the Sindh government. He was serving as the chairman of the Sindh Higher Education Commission when he was arrested.
According to the FIR registered against him, Dr Asim facilitated criminals and terrorists by getting them treated at the two branches of his hospital in Karachi.
The complainant in the FIR said that Dr Asim admitted before the JIT that he facilitated criminals and terrorists belonging to banned organisations and the Lyari gang war as well as workers of political parties at the two branches of his hospital situated in North Nazimabad and Clifton. Dr Asim was said to have also informed the team that he had committed the offence on the request of three leaders of a certain political party and also a leader of the ruling party in Sindh.
Other allegations have also been leveled in the FIR against Dr Asim, who spent Wednesday night at the North Nazimabad police station where the case was registered.
Dr Asim served as the petroleum minister during the tenure of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government.