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The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) took PTI President Parvez Elahi into custody from jail on Wednesday and took him to a Lahore sessions court where they sought his 14-day physical remand in a money laundering case.
Elahi had secured bail from an anti-corruption court in Lahore yesterday but could not be released as his release orders were not delivered to the prison authorities.
The same day, the FIA booked him, his son Moonis Elahi and three others for alleged money laundering through a frontman. Subsequently, it took Elahi into custody today from the premises of the jail and then presented him in the sessions court.
Judicial magistrate Ghulam Murtaza Virk presided over today’s hearing where the FIA sought Elahi’s 14-day physical remand.
The FIA’s counsel argued that there was “solid evidence” against Elahi and that his physical remand was needed to complete the investigation while the investigative officer said the same.
Upon the completion of the FIA’s legal team’s arguments, Elahi’s counsel, Advocate Rana Intizar, began presenting his arguments.
He said an inquiry had already been conducted before in the same case in which his client was arrested today.
“Cases are filed to make Parvez Elahi a target of political vendetta, “ he argued. The lawyer then requested the court discharge his client from the case.
At one point during the hearing, Elahi requested the court to let him speak on the rostrum, which he was permitted to do so.
“I am not being provided with facilities in the jail. The FIA has brought me here from the jail,” he informed the court.
“Insects crawl on the floor. No facility is being provided. I was wearing the same clothes at a previous hearing and am wearing the same suit today as well,” he lamented.
Elahi further said the FIA was not adhering to the court’s order and asked for a contempt of court to be filed against it.
Subsequently, the judicial magistrate reserved his verdict on the FIA’s request seeking Elahi’s physical remand.
Son seeks Elahi’s protective bail
Meanwhile, Elahi’s son, Rasikh, has filed a petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking details of all cases against his father as well as a protective bail.
Rasikh has made Punjab’s caretaker government, the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE), the FIA, Punjab Inspector General Dr Usman Anwar, the capital city police officer and the deputy inspector general respondents in the petition.
The plea, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, asks the LHC to direct the respondents to “produce all the details of criminal cases/FIRs registered against the petitioner’s father which have not been disclosed by the respondents”.
It also seeks protective bail for Elahi in the money laundering case that the PTI president was booked in a day ago.
Rasikh has also requested the LHC to direct the respondents to not arrest Elahi “while being released from the Camp Jail Lahore till the petitioner has been provided with the copies of the FIRs lodged against” Elahi, as well as till Elahi has been provided with a “reasonable opportunity of at least three days to apply for anticipatory/protective bail”.
The petition alleges that Elahi is being “politically victimised by the law-enforcing agencies” of Punjab and that he has been falsely implicated in various cases by the ACE.
It further says that false cases have been registered against Elahi on the “instructions and connivance of sitting federal government”. The plea argues that the respondents — the police, FIA and the ACE — are not discharging their duties in accordance with the law.
It describes the manner of raids conducted at Elahi’s house on April 28 as being similar to “conducting an operation in the tribal (katcha) areas of district Rahim Yar Khan, without showing any regard to the dignity and privacy of the family of the petitioner”.
The plea recalls a May court order to not arrest Elahi in “any of the cases registered against him till today” and states that five cases have bene filed against the PTI president by the ACE.