Lost cause: Appeal to quash realtor’s warrants refused

RAWALPINDI: An appeal to quash the warrants for Bahria Town chief Malik Riaz Hussain was refused on Monday. The petition was filed in Lahore High Court (LHC) after the real estate tycoon was accused of getting computerised national identity cards (CNICs) for his employees in violation of the relevant rules.

The lawyer of the housing society will now have to withdraw his petition after Justice Manzoor Ahmed Malik said that the accused had to appear in court to defend himself.

In his petition, Malik Riaz had alleged that he was being victimised by the Rawalpindi police on the directions of opposition leader in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan for political purposes.

Representing the police, Additional Advocate General Sadaqat Ail Khan maintained before the court that the arrest warrants had been issued by the magistrate under the procedural laws and only the court could be approached to review them.

Riaz had made city police officer, superintendent of police investigations, station house officer Civil Lines Police and the investigation officer, respondents in his case. The Bahria Town owner, through his lawyer Malik Waheed Anjum, had asked the high court to quash warrants and the FIR No. 197 registered on March, 8 2011.

Meanwhile, the petitioner had accused Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MNA from Rawalpindi Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan of using the district police to pressurise him for not extending political support to him.

Malik Riaz said the police had obtained his arrest warrants only to implicate him in the case that was originally registered against the officials of National Database and Registration Authority.
The petitioner added that the police had failed to implicate three employees of Bahria Town earlier, as nothing could be proven against them.

“I feel threatened by the PML-N politicians, as MPA Chaudhry Sarfaraz Afzal, adviser to chief minister Punjab, had also gotten a criminal case registered with the Airport police against the security guards of Bahria Town,” added the realtor in his petition.

According to the contents of the petition, Colonel (retd) Khalilur Rehman, the personal staff officer of Malik Riaz, had approached the police stations of Airport, Civil Lines. Sadar Beruni, Rawat, Kallar Syedan and Chauntra and submitted applications, fearing the registration of more “false” criminal cases against his boss.