Daily Times

Pakistan Peoples Party President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday moved the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking pre-arrest bail in the fake bank accounts case.

Zardari, who is among the PPP leaders being probed by the National Accountability Bureau for their alleged role in the mega money laundering and fake accounts case, filed a petition in IHC asking that the anti-corruption watchdog be stopped from arresting him.

In the petition, which names NAB chairman Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal and deputy director Mohammad Kamran, the former president has sought a pre-arrest bail until the end of the trial and requested the court to order the bureau to furnish details of all inquiries against him.

Zardari has stated in the petition that he has been summoned thrice in the fake accounts case and does not know how many inquiries are being carried out against him. He has further mentioned that NAB could arrest him in any of the inquiries and hence, he was left with no other option but to approach the court to avoid arrest.

On Tuesday, former Sindh chief minister Qaim Ali Shah was granted pre-arrest interim bail by IHC in the fake accounts case.

Last week, Zardari and his son, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, were questioned by NAB’s combined investigation team under the supervision of DG NAB Rawalpindi Irfan Mangi for approximately two hours in three cases.

A press release by NAB stated that this investigation was done under the direct supervision of NAB chairman Javed Iqbal. NAB officials also asked Zardari to submit responses to a questionnaire consisting of 40 questions within one week, for which the former president sought 10-15 days. The statements of Bilawal and Zardari were also recorded.