Daily Times

The Sindh High Court on Wednesday declared the decision of accountability court Sukkur to grant bail to Syed Khursheed Shah in assets beyond means case as void.

The accountability court had granted bail to Khursheed Shah in December after the accountability bureau’s delay in filing reference against him. The court had also ordered Shah to submit a surety bond of five million rupees.

The NAB had challenged the accountability court’s order at the Sindh High Court (SHC) Circuit Bench Sukkur, which had suspended the bail decision.

The NAB had informed the bench that Syed Khursheed Shah along with 17 co-accused facing charges in Rs 1.23 billion assets beyond means reference.

Provincial minister Awais Qadir Shah and Farrukh Shah MPA have been among 18 accused, facing graft charges in the reference.

The counsel of Khursheed Shah had argued before the high court bench that the accountability bureau has failed to prove charges against his client.

The high court after hearing arguments of the sides has declared the bail order of the accountability court as void.

Khursheed Shah, a PPP stalwart and former leader of opposition in National Assembly, has been ailing and admitted at National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) Sukkur.

Meanwhile, the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday turned down a plea of PML-N Punjab President Rana Sanaullah to restrain the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from taking any coercive measures against him in an inquiry initiated against him in assets beyond means case.

However, the divisional bench headed by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi restrained NAB from illegal harassment of petitioner Sanaullah and issued notice to NAB which sought para-wise comments.

The former law minister had challenged NAB’s inquiry in LHC which questioned the investigation of acquiring assets by two departments under two different allegations.

In his petition, Sanaullah claimed that all the assets which are owned by him, his family members and other relatives have allegedly been found to have been acquired through narcotics trade. A challan has since been submitted and the proceedings are pending before the ‘Special Court’ constituted under the Control of Narcotics Substance Act, 1997.

But another inquiry by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has been started on the same assets under the allegation of having been acquired through corruption or corrupt practices which is tantamount to the mockery of the law.

He prayed upon the court that assumption of jurisdiction, issuance of impugned call up notices and proceedings in pursuance thereof be kindly declared as mala-fide, illegal and without lawful authority and the same be quashed.

Separately, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed a reference against seven people including a coal company owner and mineral department officials of the Balochistan province over causing losses upto millions of rupees to the national exchequer.

According to a NAB spokesman, the officials and employees of the mines and minerals development department in Balochistan province were found involved in corruption worth millions.

He said that the accountability court has issued notices to the accused including Deputy Director Mohammad Zaman, Deputy Director Aizaz Khan and Imtiaz Hussain.

“The company owner with the support of corrupt officials took out coal from a mine without applying for lease and sold it out in the market, causing a loss of millions of rupees to the exchequer,” he said adding that a key accused in the case was a Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) official who made illegal agreements with the coal company.

Earlier in the day, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has summoned Punjab government’s spokesperson Shaukat Basra in assets beyond known sources of income on March 6.

The NAB has served notice to Shaukat Basra and directed him to appear before NAB Multan office for probe against him over accumulating assets beyond known sources of income.

Basra has been directed to show up before NAB Multan office on March 6.

In the month of December 2018, Basra had called on Prime Minister Imran Khan and announced to join the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) by leaving PPP.