ISLAMABAD - Federal Investigation Agency has registered a case against Pakistan’s former ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani for allegedly misusing secret funds worth $7.2 million while he was in his office in Washington DC — a step that has been regarded as ‘politically-motivated’ by Haqqani.
According to official sources, FIA has registered a first information report (FIR) against Haqqani for misuse of secret funds when he was ambassador in Washington DC. The case had been registered last week on the directions of Director General FIA Bashir Ahmed Memon.
Haqqani remained Pakistan’s ambassador during the last federal government of Pakistan People’s Party and he was forced to resign from his office in November 2011 weeks after his name surfaced in the controversial Memogate scandal.
The federal government in the last week of February had informed the Supreme Court that FIA was planning to register a case against former ambassador over misuse of funds to fulfil requirement of the Interpol for issuance of a red notice against him. Additional Attorney General Muhammad Waqar Rana had told this to a three-member Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar. The apex court had taken the suo motu notice to ensure implementation on an earlier court order asking to bring Haqqani back to Pakistan so that he could face charges against him in the Memogate scandal.
On the other hand, Haqqani, while commenting on registration of the case, said that false charges had been filed in Pakistan against him six years ago after his resignation. “These charges have been manufactured after Interpol turned down an earlier request by FIA under instructions from the Supreme Court for a red corner notice against me,” he said adding that their purpose was just to meet Interpol’s criteria for warrants because Interpol did not get involved in political cases.
“I am confident Interpol and others outside Pakistan will see the absolute lack of credibility in this politically-motivated exercise aimed at silencing a critic of the Pakistani state’s wrong policies, including its support for jihadi terrorism,” he said. He further said that this case would go nowhere not only because it was without basis but also because Pakistan’s politicised judiciary and law enforcement agencies had no respect or influence left outside Pakistan.
The Supreme Court on February 15 had issued arrest warrants for Haqqani for breaching an earlier undertaking to appear in person before the court and had directed the FIA to bring him back to the country through Interpol.
On June 4, 2013, a nine-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the then chief justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, had directed the interior secretary to make all legal efforts to bring Haqqani back in the country.
Haqqani is facing allegations in Memogate case for allegedly sending a memorandum to former US military chief Admiral Mike Mullen, through Mansoor Ijaz, seeking direct US intervention to avert a possible military coup in Pakistan in the aftermath of US Navy Seal’s May 2, 2011 raid in Abbottabad that killed Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. Later, the Supreme Court had constituted a judicial commission which in 2012 held Haqqani guilty in the Memogate case.
