RAWALPINDI – Ali Musa Gilani, the PPP MNA from Multan and son of former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Saturday filed an application in the Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi Bench to get pre-arrest bail in the ephedrine case.
Ali Musa pleaded in pre arrest bail plea, which he filed through his lawyer Dr Khalid Ranjha Advocate, that despite a detailed probe, the investigator of Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) could not prove his involvement in the case, as they had no substantial evidences against him. The two-member bench, comprising Justice Ibad-ur-Rehman and Justice Iftikhar Hussain Shah - set July 16 to take up the pre arrest bail plea of the accused in the ephedrine quota allocation case.
The applicant stated that some quarters were dragging him in media without having any solid proof against him and pleaded that the interrogators had no direct evidence against him, while his name was also not mentioned in the first information report (FIR) registered with the ANF, probing the scam.
The petitioner maintained before the court that he had been cooperating with the ANF in the probe process and was ready to reply any query of the investigators.
Later, Dr Ranjha, while briefing media about the development, said a mudslinging campaign had been launched in media against his client by the political opponents.
He asserted that the prosecution needed strong evidences in the case to prove the statements of two approvers - former director (DG) Health Dr Rasheed Jumma and former director Danas Pharmaceutical Company Rizwan Khan - and accused in the case. The defence counsel said the statements of the approvers being recorded by the prosecution in the case concerning alleged illegal allocation of ephedrine quota of 9,000 kg to two pharmaceutical companies was not in accordance with the relevant criminal laws.
On the other hand, Control of Narcotics Substance (CNS) Court Judge Zafar Iqbal Chaudhry could not record the statement of Dr Rasheed Jumma, as he did not appear before the court.
Meanwhile, the judge also extended the judicial remand of the four accused in the ephedrine quota allocation case for 11 more days.
The ANF investigators produced the four accused - Ansar Farooq, Iftikhar Babar, Abdul Sattar and Sheikh Ansar - before the court, which extended their remand and set July 25 as the next date for hearing the case.