LAHORE – The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) registered two more cases against Malik Asim, the owner of a visa consultancy firm, for fleecing people on the pretext of sending them abroad, bringing the number of cases against him to 39, sources confided to TheNation.
Sources said following the direction of the Lahore High Court to book the firm owner without any delay, the FIA was registering cases against Asim. On October 4, 17 FIRs were registered against Asim for looting people in the name of better future, a senior FIA officer said.
Similarly, 15 FIRs were registered on October 5, three cases on October 8, and two cases on October 9 on the same charges, he added. “We are conducting raids to arrest Asim but he has gone underground perhaps, we will arrest him shortly,” said an investigator of the agency.
He said police were also conducting raids for the arrest of Asim since the court had directed the DIG (Operations) to arrest him on a contempt of court warrants.
The FIA team raided the offices of the culprit on October 8, but they were locked, sources said. “Among the victims who have complained the FIA include doctors, businessmen, PIA employees and people from other walks of life,” they added.
An officer of the FIA seeking anonymity said only those people had approached the FIA who had paid more than Rs 0.5 million and people who had paid Rs three to five lacs that amount was supposed to be consultancy fee. He said on receipts given to applicants it was clearly mentioned that the said amount would be non-refundable in case of failure in getting visa.
There was no law on fixation of consultancy fee in Pakistan another officer of the FIA said, adding earlier it was objection of the FIA that why he was getting consultancy fee in lacs of rupees. But later it was established that some lawyers were getting Rs two to three million in the name of fee so one could not be stopped to get heavy amount as consultancy fee in any field.
An officer of the FIA said Asim had taken plea in his petition that since his firm was only providing consultancy services to the applicants so the FIA was not authorised to take such complaints under the FIA Immigration Act, 1979.
Another officer said Asim had also managed to get an order issued by a former FIA director general restraining all the FIA directors not to entertain applications against him.