Gilani asks son to cut short honeymoon, face probe in drug case

Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today asked his son Ali Musa, who has been linked to alleged irregularities in the import of a large amount of the chemical Ephedrine, to cut short his honeymoon and return to Pakistan to face a probe.

Ali Musa, who was recently elected to the National Assembly or lower house of Parliament, is in South Africa on his honeymoon.

Mr Gilani had asked his son to return to Pakistan and "join the investigation," the Prime Minister's House said in a statement.

The Supreme Court had recently asked Ali Musa to appear before it as part of the ongoing probe into the scandal over the allotment of drug quotas.

Ali Musa left Pakistan soon after the Supreme Court issued him a notice in the case.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry had ordered Ali Musa and former Health Secretary Khushnood Lashari to record their statements with the Anti-Narcotics Force before the next hearing of the case on April 20.

The court is examining allegations of out-of-turn quotas for importing Ephedrine that were granted to two pharmaceutical companies by the Health Ministry, allegedly under the influence of Ali Musa.

Ephedrine, commonly known as "poor man's cocaine," is used to make a medicine for cold, flu and asthma.