Jahangir Siddiqui & Co.
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JS Group, also known as Jahangir Siddiqui Group, is one of the biggest financial services provider of Pakistan, as well as the second largest shareholder of EFU Insurance. It is headquartered in Karachi, with important district offices in Lahore and Islamabad.
The investment branch of JS Group and the Pakistan arm of American Express were merged to form JS Bank Limited. [when?]
JS Air
JS Group includes a charter airline branch called JS Air (also known as JS Charter), which was set up in 2005 and operates regional low-passenger volume corporate flights, mostly serving the oil and gas industry. Between 2006 and late 2007, JS Air set up a joint venture with Airblue,[further explanation needed] the second largest airline in Pakistan, marking the nation's first ever airline joint-venture. Ultimately, the cooperation was stopped as it proved to be unsuccessfull.[1] Currently, JS Air only operates one single airplane, a 19-passenger Beech 1900C turboprop aircraft.[citation needed]
On 28 March 2011, JS Air have asked relevant authority that their operating license be withdrawn, their website has also shut down.[2]
JS Air disaster
On 5 November 2010, a JS Air Beechcraft 1900 carrying staff of Italian oil company Eni crashed one minute after takeoff from Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, killing all 21 passengers and crew on board. The pilot had reported engine troubles, before the aircraft went down near a military depot in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, a suburb of Karachi. The Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan gave a technical fault as most probale cause for the disaster. [3][4]
Land grabbing case
Prominent members of the JS group including the CEO Jahangir Siddiqui had been placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) in December 2010, for land grabbing in Karachi. The names of Jahangir Siddiqui’s wife, Mehwish Siddiqui, his son, Ali Jahangir Siddiqui, and his brother Zahid Siddiqui had also been placed on the ECL. Jahangir Siddiqui had recently illegally occupied a plot of 1,000 square yards in Karachi in connivance with the owner of an estate agency, using forged documents. [5][6]
Unauthorised related party transactions
In 2007, Pakistan's regulatory body, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), found Jahangir Siddiqui & Company Limited guilty of undertaking investments in associated parties without disclosure or informing of shareholders in the company. The shareholders of the Company on April 29, 2006 passed a resolution to make investments of Rs.150 million in the related parties and associated companies of Network Microfinance Bank Limited (NMFBL) and Jahangir Siddiqui Infocom Limited (JSIL) (both controlled bt the JS Group). According to the report, the Company had failed to comply with the requirement of the Notification by non-providing the required information to its shareholders in the general meetings of the Company held on September 29, 2007 and November 24, 2007.[7]
Allegations of Fraud and Insider Trading
In January 2011, a Srilankan Newspaper, the Sunday Leader, gained access to an investigation report [8] by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).[9] The report is said to have uncovered fraud and insider trading by JS Group Companies. Specifically, JS Global Capital Limited was found to finance the insider trading in a company called Azgard Nine Limited, which 6 months earlier had remitted 23.758 million Euros outside Pakistan. [10] [11]
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) of Pakistan uncovered that most of the transactions of Azgard Nine Limited were made by JS Global, JS Group companies, JS Group mutual funds (managed by JS investments), sponsors/directors of Azgard Nine Limited, Live Securities and Aziz Fidahussein brokerage house and his family members. [12]
Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) uncovered that JS Global Capital was the financier of the shares, and JS Global clients were the financees. 11 JS Group companies where involved, eight clients the JS Group and and four individuals with personal relationships to Jahangir Siddiqui and were involved in the insider trading; and in addition Ali Jahangir Siddiqui ( Jahangir Siddiqui’s son) was stated to be a common director in both Jahangir Siddiqui and Company Limited and Azgard Nine Limited and a Member of Audit Committee and Member of Finance Committee of Azgard Nine Limited[13].
False Allegations
Harassment of a role model entrepreneur
IT is highly intriguing that at a time when the country is in dire straits economically and there is a pressing need for taking steps to attract both local and foreign investment, some unscrupulous elements in the Government are engaged in anti-clockwise activities. They are, in fact, torpedoing the strenuous efforts being made by Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh to bring the economy back on track.
What is happening to one of the leading entrepreneurs of the country - Jehangir Siddiqui — is a classic example of harassment and victimization of those who are virtual backbones of the country’s economy. Siddiqui is considered to be one of the role model entrepreneurs, whose brilliance, innovation and hard work are contributing significantly to the economic and industrial development of the country. Apart from his personal qualities of head and heart, nobility, impeccable character and philanthropic pursuits, Jehangir Siddiqui and his family have made huge investment in different fields and of late they have also established their credentials as bankers. If encouraged and given enabling environment, the family has the potential to emerge as one of the leading business houses of the country. But unfortunately, a character assassination campaign has been launched against Mr Siddiqui and he is being harassed on the pretext of illegally occupying a piece of land, which Siddiqui says legitimately belongs to him. Not only that, his name has also reportedly been put on ECL, which seems to be an attempt to tarnish his image but in practice this is a wrong message to investors. We would urge the Prime Minister to personally look into this worst kind of victimization of a noble personality and issue instructions to the authorities concerned to instead focus their attention on resolution of the problems facing industrialists as have been identified by KCCI.[14].
Jahangir Siddiqui case: Politically-motivated harassment alleged
Allegations of illegal land occupation against Jahangir Siddiqui and his family are politically motivated and aim to intimidate and coerce Siddiqui to accept illegitimate demands of various politically connected persons, said a press release from the office of Jahangir Siddiqui. The release aimed to clarify recently published news item regarding recovery of land from Siddiqui’s family, quoting claims from Ghanwar Leghari, director anti-corruption department, Sindh and Mustafa Jamal Qazi, additional executive district officer (AEDO) revenue, city district government Karachi (CDGK). The land has neither been ‘illegally occupied’ nor wrested from the custody of Siddiqui or his family by any department, the release stated. Divulging further, the release adds that the plot of land bearing no D-177, block 5, scheme 5, Clifton, Karachi was purchased at market rate in the name of Mahvash Jahangir Siddiqui, wife of Mr Siddiqui, after publication of prominent notices in major papers, vide transfer letter in 1997. Subsequently, the plot was transferred to their son, Ali Siddiqui, by way of a gift deed in 1998 and the lease was executed in his name in 2001. The property currently is in lawful possession of Ali Siddiqui, said the release. The release further adds that a complaint was lodged by Syed Ejaz Ali Naveed, alleging he is the rightful occupant of the plot. An inquiry conducted by member (A&L), defunct Karachi development authority (KDA) in 2001 found documents presented by Mahvash Jahangir genuine and those submitted by Naveed bogus. The then director general KDA issued an order to register a criminal case for forgery to the police against Naveed but the matter was not pursued any further. Later, Naveed approached army monitoring cell V corps (AMC) in 2002, and both Ali Siddiqui and Naveed were asked to appear before the district officer (land) CDGK to re-examine the matter and substantiate their claims on the land. At the hearing, among other officials, Mustafa Qazi, the current AEDO revenue, was present as a representative of the AMC. The inquiry reconfirmed the earlier findings, declaring Ali Siddiqui’s title documents to the property as genuine, said the release. Copies of the inquiry were forwarded to all relevant authorities. The release claims there are no other properties in the Siddiquis’ possession that is subject to any dispute and therefore the allegations appearing in the paper are false. Legal action is being initiated against persons responsible for this defamation, the release concludes.[15].
Defamation: Jahangir Siddiqui sues for Rs5b
KARACHI: The Sindh High Court issued notices for January 5 to defendants in a lawsuit filed by Jahangir S. Siddiqui of the former JS bank here on Friday. The plaintiff filing the suit for defamation sought damages worth Rs5 billion for alleged allegations in the press and media. The defendants are Qamarunnisa, wife of Syed Irshad Ali, Syed Eijaz Ali Naveed, Ghanwar Khan, the Anti-Corruption Establishment director, and EDO Revenue Mustafa Jamal Qazi. The plaintiff maintains that his wife Mehvish Siddiqui purchased a plot D-177 in Clifton’s Block 5 from Mohammad A. Hussain. She later transferred the plot to her son Ali Jahangir Siddiqui. The plaintiff maintained that one of the defendants made complaints to the authorities and in 2001, the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee submitted a report after an inquiry and declared the documents and ownership by Mehvish Siddiqui as genuine and lawful. Despite this knowledge, the defendants made allegations and lodged false cases against the plaintiff, held joint press briefings and issued statements to the press to defame the plaintiff, his family members and bring his businesses into disrepute, the plaintiff stated, praying for an order of restraint against the defendants. The bench restrained the defendants from any media onslaught and ordered them to appear before the court on January 5 to defend themselves.[16].
References
- ^ JS Air to operate Gwadar for Air Blue
- ^ JS Air request license cancellation
- ^ News article on the air crash
- ^ JS Air crash at the Aviation Safety Network
- ^ Land grabbing scam, Qadeer Tanoli, The News, Thursday, December 09, 2010
- ^ Jahangir Siddiqui’s name in FIR for land grabbing, Imran Hafeez, The Tribune, International Herald Tribune, December 8, 2010
- ^ SECP vs. Jahangir Siddiqui, Enforcement Department, Company Law Division, 2008
- ^ Investigation Report on The Manipulative and Other Prohibitive Activities into Azgard Nine Limited ( ANL ), Period under review April 2, 2007 to July 13, 2007 & November 29, 2007 to April 22, 2008 , Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Securities Market Division. December 8, 2008.
- ^ Massive Fraud And Insider Trading Uncovered In Pakistan, Abdul H. Azeez, The Sunday Leader, January 02, 2011
- ^ Colombo Herald Aggregator, February 2011
- ^ Pakistan Economy Blog
- ^ Financial Institutions Report, Insider trading, Institute of Business Administration, Siraj and Khan, February 02, 2011
- ^ Business Week Profile, Ali Jahangir Siddiqui
- ^ Harassment of a role model entrepreneur
- ^ Jahangir Siddiqui case: Politically-motivated harassment alleged
- ^ Defamation: Jahangir Siddiqui sues for Rs5b
External links
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