This is a petition under section 497/498, Cr. P.C. By Muhammad Aslam, Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad and Zaffar Iqbal, petitioners Nos. 1, 2 and 4, for pre-arrest bail in respect of a case instituted against them and five others under section 3/4 of the Undesirable Companies Ordinance, 1959, and section 420/406/409/420/471, P.P.C. At police station City Sargodha on 31-12-1986.
2. The brief facts of the case are that Ch. Muhammad Aslam, Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad and Zaffar Iqbal petitioners Nos. 1, 2 and 4 who are stated to be the Directors of the Kissan Co-operative Credit Corporation, unauthorisedly began conducting business by opening various branches in the Sargodha and Faisalabad Divisions and receiving funds from the contributors without having the said Co-operative Society registered under the Co-operative Societies Registration Act, 1929. It is further alleged that though banking business is not one of the business which the Kissan Co- operative Credit Corporation could have conducted, it carried on the said business in violation of the law.
3. I have heard the arguments of the learned counsel for the petitioners and the State and have also heard the Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Punjab, Lahore.
4. On behalf of the petitioners it is submitted that they have returned about Rs.15,00,000 to the contributors in the Sargodha Division, roughly Rs. 1,00,000 to Rs. 2,00,000 to their contributors in the Faisalabad Division and roughly Rs.2,00,000 to the contributors in the Gujranwala Division. It is submitted that they are making arrangement to return back whatever amounts were received from the contributors, to them. Mr. Zahoor-ud--Din, Inspector, who is present, in person, submits that all the records of the Branches of the said Co-operative Society in the Sargodha Division have been sealed. He is not certain about the records in the offices of the said corporation in the Faisalabad and Gujranwala Divisions. Since the petitioners have alleged that they are making attempts to return back the funds received from the contributors, he does not seriously oppose the pre-arrest bail petition, if that can assist in the main task of refund of moneys to the contributors.
Considering that the petitioners are making a fair attempt to pay back the deposits received from their contributors, it is in the interest of justice that the interim pre-arrest bail allowed to Muhammad Aslam, Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad and Zaffar Iqbal, petitioners No. 1, 2 and 4, be confirmed.
5. For the foregoing reasons, this petition is accepted and the interim pre-arrest bail allowed to Muhammad Aslam, Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad and Zaffar Iqbal, petitioners Nos. 1, 2 and 4 is hereby confirmed.