Islamabad, February 15: Pakistani investigators have formally summoned Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s son Abdul Qadir to record his statement in connection with a probe into alleged corruption in the hiring of accommodation for Haj pilgrims.
The summons was issued to Abdul Qadir Gilani after he failed to appear before the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) yesterday to record his statement regarding the scam.
Hours after the notice was issued by the FIA yesterday, the head of the investigation team, Director Hussain Asghar, was removed from the panel.
FIA chief Waseem Ahmed told that a notice had been issued to Qadir Gilani “asking him to appear before the Joint Investigation Team constituted for the Haj scam”.
The FIA will seek a “perpetual arrest warrant” for him if he fails to appear for questioning.
A warning from the FIA’s legal directorate was attached to the notice summoning Abdul Qadir for interrogation, the report said.
The premier’s son has been accused of receiving Rs 20 million as kickbacks in the multi-million-rupee scandal that has already cost two federal ministers their jobs.
Former Religious Affairs Minister Hamid Saeed Kazmi is currently free on interim bail after a court in Islamabad issued a warrant for his arrest.
The FIA summoned Abdul Qadir to record his statement in line with an order issued recently by the Supreme Court, which is hearing a suo motu case on the Haj scam.
Abdul Qadir was to appear before the investigation team yesterday but did not show up.
The notice is accompanied by a questionnaire consisting of about a dozen queries.
“Did you receive a ‘lion’s share’ of the money embezzled during arrangements made for the annual pilgrimage?
Did you import a black Toyota Prado Land Cruiser and pay Rs 8.5 million as import duty with this money? Did former Director General Hajj Rao Shakil Ahmad give you this money for the import of this bulletproof vehicle? Did you pressurise Hamid Saeed Kazmi to get special quota for pilgrims last year?”
Zain Sukhera, a close friend of Abdul Qadir who has also been linked to the scam, yesterday resigned from his post of consultant with the Information Technology Ministry.
Sukhera has been accused of obtaining a fake LLM degree, on the basis of which he was appointed to the post.
—PTI