ISLAMABAD: State Minister for Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Rana Muhammad Afzal has informed the National Assembly that over 50,000 cases of loan defaulters were pending before various courts in the country.
Replying to a Calling Attention Notice raised by Rana Muhammad Hayat regarding inadequate laws for recovery of loans from the defaulters including waived off loans by the government, the minister said prolong litigation in such cases was main reason for the banks and other financial institutions to recover loans from the defaulters.
He said the government did not waive off loans and board of directors (BoDs) of all banks decide to write off the loans.He said around 80 per cent banks were working in the private sector and the BoDs were fully empowered to decide such cases on merit. However, these banks were regulated by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), he said.
The minister said all banks have to follow the guidelines given by the SBP in waiving off the loans.
He said as per 2008 financial law, the banks were empowered to auction unilaterally all mortgaged properties. However, the Supreme Court set aside the said clause, he said. Afzal said the banks were again empowered in 2016 through legislation to auction the mortgaged properties under the direction given by the Apex Court. He said there were proper laws for willful defaulters and such people were tried under criminal act and National Accountability Bureau laws. The minister said the Senate Standing Committee on Finance was also looking into the matter of loans defaulters and waivers and complete list of all defaulters and waivers was provided to it. Earlier, moving the notice, Rana Muhamamd Hayat urged the House for bringing effective legislation to recover loans from all the defaulters and those who had waived off their loans.
He said such people deserved no leniency that had plundered the national wealth. Later, Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq referred the matter the Standing Committee on Finance with direction to present a comprehensive report in 15 days to the House. The Speaker also directed to take up the pending cases with the courts through law ministry.
