CJP proposes construction of two dams with money recovered from debt dodgers

• Several defaulters agree to pay back 75 percent of loans court decides against sending the case to banking courts 

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Saturday said that a consensus has been reached over the immediate construction of two dams that would be built from the money recovered from the defaulting companies.

Justice Nisar made this announcement while a hearing a suo motu case pertaining to the 222 companies and individuals that had their loans, amounting to Rs54 billion, waived off fraudulently.

The CJP also said that the amount recovered from the 222 companies would be used for the construction of these two dams after the companies agreed to pay 75 per cent amount as per a formula suggested by a Supreme Court judge.

The formula allowed companies to repay 75 per cent of the outstanding amount of the loans that had been written off under the SBP scheme. The top judge, however, warned defaulters of banking courts if they failed to cough up the due amount.

Other companies involved in the case who wish to contest the case further have the option to go to banking courts, the CJP said, adding that if banking courts give the verdict against the companies, then they would have to pay the full amount of their loans.

In case, the parties failed to repay their loans they could also go to jail for as long as one year, the CJP added.

Upon this, the counsels of the several companies urged Justice Nisar to refrain from sending the case to the banking court. Consequently, the judge ordered them to submit written recommendations regarding how to proceed with the case, besides directing constitution of a special bench to decide if the case should be sent to banking courts or be heard by the SC.

Moreover, the top judge also said that the consensus regarding the immediate construction of dams was reached in a meeting with several stakeholders and experts. The hearing was adjourned till July 4.