- Thursday, December 26, 2024
The army statement said that “multiple instances of violation” of the Pakistan Army Act have been established against ex-spy chief after his retirement
By: Shajil Kumar
PAKISTAN’S ex-spy chief who served during jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s term has been taken into military custody, the army announced Monday (12).
Lieutenant general Faiz Hameed, who stepped down in December 2022, was accused of abusing his power and raiding the businesses of a private housing developer, according to Supreme Court papers published last year.
The court at the time ordered the developer to take his complaints to the ministry of defence.
“Complying with the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a detailed court of inquiry was undertaken by Pakistan Army. Consequently, appropriate disciplinary action has been initiated against Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (Retd),” the military’s media wing said in a statement.
The process of court-martial “has been initiated” and Hameed “has been taken into military custody”, the statement said.
It added that “multiple instances of violation” of the Pakistan Army Act since his retirement had also been “established”.
Hameed was considered extremely powerful when he headed the spy agency from 2019 to 2021.
He was appointed to the coveted post after prematurely removing then ISI chief and current Army chief Lt Gen Asim Munir.
It was reported then that then prime minister Imran Khan was not happy with Munir.
Later, the army decided to replace Hameed, a move vehemently opposed by Imran Khan and it led to the souring of his ties with the military.
The military is the most powerful institution in Pakistan and is behind the rise and fall of every civilian government, according to analysts.
Analysts say Hameed was a keen supporter of Khan, who was booted from power in a no-confidence vote after losing favour with some of the top brass.
Once tipped as a contender for the top role of Chief of Army Staff, Hameed took early retirement, months after Khan lost power.
Khan went on to wage a campaign of defiance against the military and his arrest in May 2023 for graft sparked nationwide protests which turned violent and saw unprecedented anger directed at army installations.
It was met with a sweeping crackdown against his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, which went on to win the most seats in February’s national election despite being forced to run as independent candidates.
However, the party was kept from power by an alliance of parties that analysts say are backed by the military.
Top City case
The Top City case made headlines when on November 8, 2023, when its owner Moeez Ahmed Khan filed a petition in the Supreme Court accusing Hameed of misusing his authority.
He stated in the petition that on May 12, 2017, at the behest of Gen Hameed, ISI officials raided the Top City office and his house and seized valuables, including gold, diamonds and money.
He also stated that Sardar Najaf, the brother of Hameed, also contacted him to resolve the issue later.
The petition also claimed that Gen Hameed later personally met him to resolve the issue. He alleged that the ISI officials extorted Rs 40 million cash from him.
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, which included Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Qazi Faiz Isa, Justice Attar Minullah and Justice Aminuddin, heard the case and decided to send it to the Ministry of Defence for probing the allegation.
The army announced in April this year that it constituted a high-level inquiry committee headed by a major general to look into the allegations.
Party reactions
The ruling coalition of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People Party (PPP) has hailed Hameed’s arrest, but Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party termed it as the army’s “internal matter”.
PML-N members, including Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Senator Irfan Siddiqui, Senator Afnan, Rana Sanaullah as well as Pakistan People Party (PPP) leader Qamar Zaman Kaira, welcome the arrest with Tarar calling it a “right decision”.
“Action against Faiz Hameed would have been taken on the basis of investigation,” the minister said.
PTI party chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said it was army’s internal matter. The army is a disciplined institution with its own procedures for dealing with both serving and retired officers, the Dawn newspaper reported. (Agencies)
