MRS. RASHIDA ASAD, J.---By this order we propose to dispose of the above mentioned petitions filed on behalf of petitioners Greesh Kumar, Ramesh Kumar and Akbar Ali for confirmation of their pre-arrest bail granted to them through orders of this court in Reference No. 05 of 2019 State v. Akber Ali Rahimoon, Ex Assistant District Education Officer Mithi and others who are alleged to be involved in corruption and corrupt practices under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 (NAO).
2. Brief facts of the case are that on receipt of a complaint against officers and officials of District Accounts Office and Education Department, Mithi, containing allegations of making illegal appointm ents at District Accounts Office Mithi, an inquiry was authorized, which was subsequently converted into investigation. During the course of investigation it revealed that petitioner No 3, who at the time of commission of offence held the post of ADEO/DDO primary and secondary and higher secondary education, Taluka Chachro, in connivance with petitioner No. 2, the then Assistant and petitioner No.3, the then Sub-Accountant of district Mithi, made 45 X illegal appointments during the years 2009 to 2013, and said illegal appointees were paid huge amount to the tune of Rs.32,556,875/- under the garb of salary from the Cost Centers of the then Assistant District Office Education Primary and Secondary (Male - Female), Taluka Chacchro. That documents of said illegal appointments i.e. Offer Letters, Appointment Orders, Reinstatement Orders, Transfer Orders and Medical Fitness Certificates, on verification were found to be fake and bogus. That neither any entry in outward register(s) was available in respect of said appointees nor their names were mentioned in merit/ reinstatement list. Further, the Petitioner No.3 allowed the illegal appointees to join and draw the salaries illegally by using cost centers of his office during his incumbency. He signed FO-I Forms (for the release of pay) of those appointees from the cost centers of his office and also signed posting orders and service books of few of them. Moreover, he made illegal payments of cash of Rs.7,142,426/- to Petitioner No.1 from the Bank accounts of the office i.e. Assistant District Office, Education Taluka Chacchro during the year 2011 to 2013 and the bills of said payments were not available in the record.
3. It is also alleged that Petitioner No.1 was assigned the task of accounts and payroll by Petitioner No.3 in the office of Assistant District Office Education Taluka Chacchro, who made signatures/initials on the service books of some illegal appointees, who were paid salaries from the cost center of the office of Assistant District Education, Taluka Chacchro. Whereas, Petitioner No.1 illegally and malafidely hired/activated/ transferred illegal appointees into SAP Master Data in his 'capacity as Sub-Accountant at District Accounts Office, Mithi and issued their pay into SAP System from the cost centers of Education Department, Mithi, in active connivance with Petitioner No.3. He also initiated the pay of those illegal appointees using his user "RKUMAR" which is allotted to him as he worked at HR Payroll. Section and also remain ed Sub-Accountant, Auditor of Education Department. Some of FO-I Forms of those illegal appointees, for the purpose of release of pay at District Accounts Office Mithi, were also audited by him and said Forms bore his initials/signatures. Accordingly , they have caused huge loss of Rs.39,699,301/- to the National Exchequer , hence they have committed the offence of corruption and corrupt practices as defined under section 9(a)(iv)(vi) and (xii) punishable under section 10 of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999.
4. Learned counsel for Petitioners argued that the Petitioners have been falsely implicated in this case with mala fide intention and ulterior motives as otherwise they have nothing to do with the alleged processing of fake offer letters/appointment/medical fitness certificates; that the Petitioners are innocent; that the grievance of the Petitioners is that NAB authorities are harassing and intimidating them without any justification; that there is no iota of evidence against the Petitioners to show their involvement in the commission of alleged crime to gain illegal benefits as alleged in the reference; that no direct evidence is available against the Petitioners; that the prosecution has failed to point out any mens rea against the Petitioners; that the investigat ion has already been completed and reference has been filed in Court. They next submitted that so far as the Petitioners Nos.1 and 2 are concerned they were booked by the NAB without any notice; that the Petitioners were asked by the NAB authorities to voluntarily return the amount so embezzled. All the petitioners submitted that their pre arrest bail should be confirmed considering the above reasons.
5. On the other hand Special Prosecutor NAB vehemently opposed the confirmation of pre arrest bail to each of the petitioners and submitted that same should be recalled. In support of his contentions he took the court through various documents on record which showed there was sufficient material on record to prove that all the petitioners were connected with the offences for which they have been charged. He also submitted that there was no mala fides on the part of NAB.
6. We have considered submission of the parties and perused the record.
7. There is no cavil to the fact that the Petitioners are holder of public office. The allegations levelled against them are very serious in nature and the same have an adverse effect on public at large. These allegations are supported by documentary evidence which prima facie connect the petitioners with the commission of alleged offence that the Petitioners have misused their public authority by making false/ fake appointments as well issuing/ releasing salaries, thereby caused a loss of Rs.32,556,875/- to the National exchequer.
Sufficient incriminating material has been collected by the NAB authorities in shape of relevant documents viz. offer letters, appointment orders, salary bills, Cheques, and Debit Vouchers which bear signatures of the petitioners connecting them with the alleged white collar crime.
8. Though only a bird view of the record was to be made at bail stage and deeper appreciation is not possible however, we observed that cases of white collar crime are generally of an intricate and complex nature and the whole transaction and each component part of the scam needs to be viewed in a holistic manner and not in isolation. It also reflects from the statement of Keval Ram, DEO (Primary) Tharparkar at Mithi, section 161, Cr.P.C., that his office had issued a letter to the Civil Surgeon, Civil Hospital Mithi dated 08.11.2018 regarding verification of medical fitness certificates of 09x appointees, pertaining to his office, out of which four certificates were found to be bogus. Further, he got verified offer/appointment orders of 37 x suspected appointees which pertains to their office and 28 x appointees were found bogus.
As well no record in outward registers was available in respect of those appointees. He also stated that on being asked to provide the original appointment/offer letters and fitness certificates of those illegal appointees the concerned TEOs intimated that no original record is available in their respective offices regarding said bogus employees. Moreover, the concerned TEOs also contacted to be said illegally appointees but they (appointees) refused to submit original record. It was also stated that copies of record of illegal employees were received from concerned TEOs, which reveals that back-dated appointment orders were managed for giving illegal joining.
9. Prosecution witness Dolat Ram, DEO (Secondary) Tharparkar during his statement under section 161 provided detail report regarding 19 x appointees, pertained to his office in which 17 x appointees were found bogus. Moreover, no record in outward registers had been maintained regarding those appointees. He also provided details of the illegal appointees with their complete record the same is available at page-127 of the investigation report submitted by Respondent.
10. All petitioners who in connivance with each other by misuse of their authority made illegal appointments of 45 x teaching/non-teaching staff, who had been paid huge amount to the tune Rs.32,556,875/- as salary and also embezzled the funds to the tune of Rs.7,142,426/-, thereby caused total loss of Rs.39,699,301/- to the public exchequer. The Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan while deciding Civil Appeals Nos.1340, 1341 and 1342 of 2018 and Civil Miscellaneous Application No.9985 of 2018 in Civil Appeal No.1340 of 2018 in a reported case of "Chairman, National Accountability Bureau, Islamabad through Prosecutor-General Accountability, Islamabad v. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and 2 others" [PLD 2019 Supreme Court 445] has held as under:-- "With reference to many a precedent case a Larger Bench of this Court has clarified in the case of Tallat Ishaq v. National Accountability Bureau and others (Civil Petition No.632 of 2019 decided on 01.10.2018) that in cases under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 bail may be granted through exercise of Constitutional jurisdiction of a High Court only in extraordinary circumstances and in cases of extreme hardship but in the present cases no such extraord inary circumstance or hardship had been referred to by the High Court in the impugned judgments passed by it."
11. In the instant case, the learned counsel for the petitioners/accused has failed to disclose an extraordinary circumstance or hardship for grant of bail. It is well-settled principle of law that at bail stage only tentative assessment is to be made. Therefore, we are of the view that prima facie there is sufficient material available on record to connect the petitioners in the instant case. No mala fide on the part of NAB authorities or Investigating Officer has been pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioners.
12. In view of the above facts and circumstances, we are of the opinion that the petitioners have failed to make out a case for grant of pre-arrest bail. Accordingly, their bail petitions were dismissed, and interim pre- arrest bail earlier granted to them vide orders dated 02.05.2019 in C.P. No.D-1017 of 2019, 09.05.2019 in C.P.
No. D-1454 of 2019 and 06.11.2018 in C.P. No.D-1607 of 2019 (Old No.7762 of 2018 at Principal Seat, Karachi) are hereby recalled with immediate effect.
13. As regards the case law cited by the learned counsel for the Petitioners, in support of their submissions, the facts and circumstances of the said case are quite dif ferent from the case in hand.
14. Petitions stand dismissed.