What is Top City Case in which ex-ISI Chief Faiz Hameed is facing arrest, court Martial?
Former ISI Chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed has been held by military after an inquiry into complaints related to Top City Case.
A statement shared by ISPR
said Pakistan Army conducted investigation as per top court orders. The
inquiry revealed several violations of the Army Act, leading to
disciplinary action and the initiation of a Field General Court Martial
against Hameed.
In 2023, the private housing society owner sought action against
Lt-Gen retd. Faiz Hameed and his associates for raiding Top City Housing
Scheme.
Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa led bench reviewed petition by Moeez
Ahmed Khan, owner of Top City as petitioner claims that in May 2017,
Rangers personnel and ISI raided his office and residence.
According to him, security personnel confiscated gold, diamonds, and
piles of cash under the guise of investigating a terrorism case.
Later, Sardar Najaf, Faiz’s brother contacted Kunwar Khan with a
brigadier to arrange a meeting, where Hameed allegedly promised to
return some items but withheld 400 tolas of gold and cash.
Kunwar Khan accused former spymaster of
malicious prosecution and alleges that retired ISI brigadiers Naeem
Fakhar and Ghaffar pressured him to pay 4 crores in cash and support a
private TV network. Several ex-ISI officials were also part of alleged
illegal takeover of the housing society.
Former director general Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen (retired) Faiz Hameed is facing court martial and has been taken into military custody after Supreme Court directs to investigate complaints against former general related to Top City case.
Army’s media wing ISPR said a high-level inquiry committee was
established to look into allegations of authority misuse during Faiz
Hameed’s tenure as chief of country’s top intelligence agency.
The 3-star general served at several key positions in his decades
long career. The army officer of Baloch Regiment also served as General
Officer Commanding of the 16th Infantry Division in Pano Akil and
Commander of the XXXI Corps before his early retirement in 2022.
Faiz joined Pakistan Military Academy in 1987. He graduated from the
Command & Staff College in Quetta and was commissioned into the
Baloch Regiment. His family, known for producing military leaders,
includes his brothers Sardar Sikandar Hayat (deceased), Sardar Najaf
Hameed (a land revenue officer), and Sardar Khizar.
His career highlights include serving as Adjutant General at Army
Headquarters Rawalpindi and leading the ISI from January 2017 to April
2019. He also reminded at the position of GOC for the 16th Infantry
Division from June 2015 to January 2017.
Before his retirement, ex-ISI chief was also Corp Commander in Peshawar and Bahawalpur until his retirement.
Former Pakistani general faced allegations of Judicial Manipulation
in the Panama Papers case involving former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Faiz Hameed however denied these allegations, stating they were false
and asserting that the constitution of court benches was under the
purview of the IHC chief justice.
In a major development, Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed (retd)
has been taken into military custody and the process of field court
martial has been initiated against the former spy master, the
Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) stated on Monday.
“Complying with the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a
detailed court of inquiry was undertaken by Pakistan Army, to ascertain
the correctness of complaints in the Top City case made against Lt Gen
Faiz Hameed (retd),” the ISPR said in a press statement.
“Consequently, appropriate disciplinary action has been initiated
against Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (retd), under provisions of the Pakistan Army
Act.
“In addition, multiple instances of violation of the Pakistan Army
Act post-retirement have also been established. The process of Field
General Court Martial has been initiated and Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (retd)
has been taken into military custody.”
The ISPR’s statement indicates that the former Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI) chief was also engaged in activities that, under the
Pakistan Army’s post-retirement regulations, are not lawful.
After retiring in 2022, however, the former spymaster was seen in a video declaring that he would not enter politics.
Background
Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (retd), who took premature retirement from service
in December 2022, has been in the news for some time, often for
controversial reasons. He was among the six senior generals whose name
was included by GHQ in the list of potential candidates for the post of
army chief in 2022.
Hameed was director general of the ISI from 2019 to 2021, and came
into global spotlight when he was filmed drinking tea in the lobby of a
Kabul hotel shortly after the Taliban had
taken over Afghanistan following the pullout of U.S. and other Western
forces in 2021.
Before retirement, Hameed was the commander of the Bahawalpur and
Peshawar corps. He faced criticism from political parties for supporting
Imran Khan’s previous government and victimising PTI’s political
opposition.
Recently, Faisal Vawda, a former federal minister, accused the
ex-spymaster of being the “architect” and “mastermind” of the corruption
case Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former premier Imran
Khan is currently facing regarding the Al-Qadir Trust.
“My compulsion today was to tell the nation that when you say the
beneficiary is Imran, […] the biggest is Faiz Hameed,” he said while
speaking to reporters in Islamabad.
In March, the anti-corruption department arrested a former deputy
tehsildar, Sardar Najaf Hameed, the brother of former DG ISI Lt Gen Faiz
Hameed (retd), in a case related to corruption and misuse of authority
after the court canceled his bail.
The anti-corruption department’s official also arrested Hameed after
the anti-corruption court’s judge Judge Ali Nawaz Bhakar rejected his
bail after he arrived late to the court.
No comments:
Post a Comment