Daily Times

An accountability court, on Saturday, granted extension in the judicial remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Aleem Khan till April 30 in offshore companies and alleged assets beyond known sources of income case.

While Judge Saeed Najmul Hassan granted request filed by National Accountability Bureau (NAB), he appeared reluctant to do so. He observed, “No one should be kept in jail unnecessarily.”

As the hearing went underway, the NAB investigation officer argued before the court that most of the investigation against Khan had been completed and the final report would soon be presented after getting it signed from the bureau’s chairman.

The defence counsel noted that NAB’s stance had not changed in this regard since the day it urged court for Khan’s judicial remand.

The court directed the investigating authorities to present their final report on the matter in the next hearing of the case.

Khan was arrested by the accountability bureau in Lahore on multiple charges involving an offshore company, Hexam Investment Overseas Ltd; assets beyond income as well as enquiries into his alleged role in the Park View Housing Society, River Age Housing Society and Multan Road scams.

It is alleged that the PTI stalwart had misused his authority as the general secretary of the Park View Housing Society along with during his tenure as the member of Punjab assembly to acquire assets beyond his known sources of income.

In January 2018, NAB had sought the records and details of offshore companies reportedly established in tax havens abroad by Khan and Pakistan Muslim League-Qaid’s (PML-Q) leader and son of Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, Chaudhry Moonis Elahi.

Earlier in this January, NAB Lahore put hands on a Mutual Legal Assistance report in this regard. The bureau based this document to summon the former MPA, where he was arrested.

Khan is said to have invested tens of millions of rupees in real state business. He bought as many as 900 kanals of land and a further 600 kanals of land through a company set up for this purpose, A&A Private Ltd.

When asked, the corruption watchdog maintains, the PTI leader was unable to show the money trail, using which he had made the grand transaction.

Khan is also accused of setting up multiple offshore companies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the UK in 2005 and 2006, which were used to purchase assets beyond his known means of income.

It may be pertinent to mention here that immediately after his arrest, the PTI leader tendered his resignation to Punjab Chief Minister, Usman Buzdar.