The Supreme Court Tuesday issued notices to Ali Musa Gilani, son of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, and former DG Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) Major General Shakil in Ephedrine drug quota case. A three-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry heard the case. The ANF officials told the court that Secretary Narcotics was trying to protect Ali Musa Gilani. To this the chief justice remarked that this was a sensitive issue, where they needed to tread carefully. The ANF team comprising Brigadier Faheem investigating the case were presented before the court. The counsel for Brigadier Faheem informed the court that the ANF team working on the case had been changed. The chief justice inquired as to why this had happened and remarked that may be the reason was the involvement of some prominent person and further investigation was required. Brigadier Faheem informed the court that the chemical quota was allotted by former Health Secretary Khushnood Lashari. The ANF has issued summons for Lashari and Ali Musa Gilani, and on the request of Lashari the ANF team met him at the PM House. Brigadier Faheem further informed the court that Ali Musa Gilani’s father was upset over the notice and the law secretary along with entire state machinery were trying to save Khushnood Lashari and Ali Musa Gilani in this case. The court ordered Ali Musa Gilani and Khushnood Lashari to record their statements in ANF and the investigation team be restored. The case will be heard again on April 20. It should be mentioned that the case regarding the illegal sale of a drug, ephedrine was registered on October 10 last year, after two pharmaceutical companies -- Danas Pharmaceutical Limited and Berlex Lab International --were accused of obtaining import quotas for the drug in collusion with the health ministry officials that exceeded the limits fixed by the Narcotics Control Board. The NCB had fixed an annual quota of 22,000kg of ephedrine for Pakistan for 2010-11, but the Ministry of Health following its devolution allocated a quota of around 31,000kg of the drug.