SECP Chairman Zafar Hijazi's interim bail approved till July 21

Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday approved an interim bail of Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Chairman Zafar Hijazi till July 21 in Chaudhry Mills’ record tampering case.

Special judge of IHC Malik Tahir heard the case during which Hijazi said that he wants to be a part of the investigation but he can’t stay in jail due to his bad health.

The court accepted his pre-arrest bail over surety bond of Rs5 lac whereas a notice has also been issued to Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit reply in next hearing.

Earlier during the hearing, Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed had stated that the apex court instructed to drill the name of person on whose orders SECP chairman clandestinely altered the records.

FIA had endorsed allegations leveled by Panamagate JIT's head Wajid Zia and found SECP chairman Zafar Hijazi guilty of tampering with record of Sharif family's companies. The authority had penned a letter to Interior Ministry to put offender's name on Exit Control List (ECL).

It was disclosed that Zafar Hijazi had on June 29, 2016, ordered Ali Azeem and Maheen Fatima to close the inquiry of Chaudhry Sugar Mills in the date of January 2013. He also pressurized his subordinates to forge the records.

The inquiry committee recorded statements of 12 officers and found SECP chairman guilty of “misconduct by passing illegal orders and pressuring his subordinates to do illegal acts. It called for lodging a case under Sections 466, 472 PPC read with 5 (2) PCA 1947 against him.