–AGP tells SC out of 642 affidavits received, 185 are from Punjab, 390 from Sindh, 52 from Islamabad, 4 from Balochistan and 17 from KP
ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Tuesday informed the Supreme Court (SC) that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has issued notices to 895 individuals in the foreign properties case.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar was told that 642 affidavits have been obtained out of 895 notices that were issued in this regard.
Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan said that out of the 642 affidavits, 185 are from Punjab, 390 from Sindh, 52 from Islamabad, 4 from Balochistan and 17 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The court was further informed that some individuals claim they disclosed their properties recently in the amnesty scheme, some are under probe by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and some individuals have disowned the properties.
In order to initiate further proceedings to recover money from those who illegally own properties abroad, the attorney general has sought two weeks from the court, however, the CJP urged him to speed up the process.
Last month, the SC directed FIA to present a report pertaining to the legality of 2,700 properties acquired by Pakistanis in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The hearing has been adjourned till October 25.
Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Special Assistant on Accountability Shahzad Akbar had said that the newly constituted Asset Recovery Unit (ARU) comprising National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials will investigate over 10,000 foreign properties owned by Pakistanis.
“ARU members have been selected and we have received details about 10,000 properties owned by Pakistanis in the United Kingdom (UK) and United Arab Emirates (UAE),” he had said, adding that details of “at least half of the 10,000 properties were previously available but no action was taken”.
Moreover, it was said that notices have been issued for 300 properties from the list which had been divided into two parts, one for politically exposed people, and one for other citizens.
“The politically exposed people will be investigated in terms of money laundering and will be asked that how they managed to own such properties worth billions of rupees,” he had said, adding that the people who were not politically exposed but owned such properties would also be scrutinised as they also committed crime by hiding their properties and evading huge amount of taxes.
He had said about half of the above-mentioned properties were already known during the tenure of the previous government, but the previous government committed criminal oblivion by not taking any action against them.
He had also informed that among these properties, two flats in London were registered in the personal name of former finance minister Ishaq Dar, and these properties were not known to anyone before.
Shahzad Akbar said majority of these properties were `benami’ assets and were registered in the name of wives, children or personal employees of the big names.
Earlier, the FIA Director General Bashir Memon had told the apex court that the agency had traced 2,700 properties owned by overseas Pakistanis.
