Daily Times

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Tuesday submitted its reply over a bail plea filed by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

A two-member bench comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Mohsin Akhtar took up the two petitions of the former prime minister seeking bail in the Al-Azizia reference.

A 18-page response submitted by the accountability watchdog pleaded the court to dispose-off Nawaz Sharif’s application. “The NAB opposes granting bail to PML-N supremo as two pleas are under hearing against him,” the answer read. The NAB also requested the IHC to impose fine on Nawaz Sharif after by disposing of his bail plea.

Meanwhile, NAB has decided to contact Interpol for the extradition of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s sons, Hassan and Hussain, and former finance minister Ishaq Dar.

The three high-profile individuals have already been declared absconders by the court.

The accountability watchdog is likely to contact Interpol via interior ministry in the coming days.

Hussain and Hasan Nawaz, Shehbaz Sharif’s son Salman Shehbaz and son-in-law Ali Imran, former finance minister Ishaq Dar and son-in-law of former chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry Mustafa Amjad have been declared absconders by the court in several corruption cases. They are currently residing in different foreign countries.

Separately, an accountability court has once again indicted Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader and former federal minister for communications Dr Arbab Alamgir and his wife Asma Alamgir, a former MNA, after removing the part regarding foreign properties from the reference.

Dr Arbab and Asma appeared before the accountability court as it heard a case against them for owning assets beyond known sources of income.

The court after hearing the arguments of both sides removed the part regarding foreign properties from the reference against the PPP leaders. The court also summoned five witnesses of the case at the next hearing of the case.

The NAB had filed a reference against the couple for allegedly accumulating assets worth Rs 332 million which were beyond their known sources of income. NAB said in its report that it surfaced that the suspects accumulated movable and immovable assets including a house in G-11/3 Islamabad; 10 kanals of land at Mauza Shah Allah Ditta Islamabad; a bungalow in F-7/2 Islamabad; prize bonds; a land rover vehicle and several bank transactions.

Published in Daily Times, February 13^th 2019.