LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday allowed an opportunity to a federallaw of ficer to submit replies on behalf of the government and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to a petition of former federal minister Chaudhry Moonis Elahi seeking quashment of a case of alleged money laundering registered by the agency against him on a report of the Sugar Inquiry Commission of 2020.

As Justice Asjad Javed Ghural resumed the hearing of the petition, a deputy attorney general sought time to seek instructions for filing replies on behalf of the respondents.The judge allowed the request and adjourned the hearing till Oct 3.

Mr Elahi, through his counsel, contended that the impugned case and the proceedings before the FIA were a result of mala fide intention, and considerations extraneous to law. He alleged that the impugned proceedings had been initiated to harass and blackmail him and his family so as to muffle their voice against the coalition government in the Centre.

He stated that none of the suspects nominated in the FIR had been a public servant in the service of the federal government or any corporation under the control of the Centre.He further said the FIR had been registered in pursuance ofthe sugar commission inquiry without issuing any summon or notice to him, which showed clear mala fide and violation of the statutory laws.

A special court had confirmed the pre-arrest bail of Elahi and other suspects,includingthePunjabAssembly`s then secretary Muhammad Khan Bhatti and Wajid Bhatti in the case.

The FIA registered the FIR under sections 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of a commonintention),109(punishmentforabatement), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using a genuine forged document) of the PPC, read with section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 and section 4 of the Anti Money LaunderingAct.-Staff Reporter