Daily Times

An accountability court on Monday dismissed an application filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for the withdrawal of the Bank of Punjab (BoP) reference against former BoP president Hamesh Khan, CEO of Harris Steel Industries Sheikh Muhammad Afzal, and others.

The court summoned witnesses to record their statements at the next hearing on November 26.

Accountability Court Judge Zubair Shahzad Kiyani conducted the proceedings on the reference, during which Sheikh Afzal and other accused appeared and marked their attendance.

During the proceedings, Khawaja Haris, representing BoP, opposed the withdrawal of the reference, arguing that the NAB chairman’s directions to withdraw the reference violated the law. He submitted that the NAB chairman did not consult the NAB Prosecutor General, Punjab, for this purpose. He further noted that the reference was not only 17 years old but also that statements from 81 witnesses had already been recorded, leaving only statements from 5 witnesses to be recorded.

He argued that the accused committed fraud and opened numerous fake accounts, while many accused had availed plea bargains for admitting guilt. He urged the court to continue the reference proceedings independently, without NAB’s prosecution.

Subsequently, the court dismissed NAB’s application and summoned witnesses for the next hearing on November 26.

Through the application, NAB had given a clean chit to Hamesh Khan, Sheikh Afzal, and others and sought permission to withdraw the reference. The NAB stated that a recent review revealed no substantial evidence of corruption against the accused. The bureau further submitted that the NAB chairman had instructed the withdrawal of the reference against the accused.

This case was originally filed by NAB in 2008, alleging large-scale financial fraud involving multiple fake accounts and unauthorized loans totaling billions of rupees. The bureau alleged that billions of rupees were embezzled with the connivance of former BoP president Hamesh Khan, CEO of Harris Steel Industries Sheikh Muhammad Afzal, and others.