An accountability court on Thursday declared Kamran Kayani, brother of former army chief Gen (r) Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Paragon City Housing Society Director Nadeem Zia and Khalid Hussain as proclaimed offenders in a case pertaining to the Ashiyana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme scandal, media reports said. Accountability Court Judge Syed Najamul Hassan conducted the case proceedings, wherein bureaucrat Fawad Hassan Fawad and other accused were produced.
At the outset of the proceedings, a reply was submitted on behalf of Kot Lakhpat Jail superintendent wherein it was stated that PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif was lodged in a sub-jail in Islamabad and a medical board had advised him bed rest. The court ordered to produce Sharif on the next hearing. To which, Sharif’s counsel Amjad Pervez submitted that if medical board permits then he has no objection in producing Sharif before the court. However, NAB Prosecutor Waris Janjua argued that the matter was being delayed as the same excuses were used during the last hearing.
At this stage, a police inspector told the court that raids were conducted to arrest Kamran Kayani, Khalid Hussain, and Nadeem Zia after issue of their arrest warrants during the last hearing, but their houses were found locked. Upon this, the NAB prosecutor pleaded with the court to issue directions for initiating the process of declaring the accused as proclaimed offenders. The court, after hearing arguments of all parties, ordered for initiating the process of declaring Kayani, Hussain, and Zia as proclaimed offenders. Furthermore, the court directed for publication of notices in newspapers, ordering the accused to appear in the court till February 11.
Published in Daily Times, January 11th 2019.
