An accountability court has ordered the confiscation of properties of former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son, Suleman Shehbaz, in relation to the ongoing money laundering case against the Sharif family, a private TV channel reported.
The development came as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) approached the court to confiscate Suleman Shehbaz’s properties. During the hearing, Judge Malik Amir Khan approved the NAB’s request to confiscate properties of Shehbaz Sharif’s son. The court, in its proceedings, also declared Suleman Shehbaz an absconder and ordered publishing of advertisements in this regard against the suspect.
PTI leaders and the NAB had alleged that former chief minister Shehbaz Sharif and his sons Hamza and Suleman, who is in London these days with his family, have been involved in laundering of Rs 85 billion.
Meanwhile, an accountability court in Lahore on Friday issued bailable arrest warrants for former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf in a NAB case against him for making illegal appointments in the Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO) during his stint as federal minister for water and power.
Duty judge Jawadul Hassan rejected an application from Ashraf’s lawyer, Advocate Iftikhar Shahid, for a court exemption for his client and instead issued his arrest warrants. NAB prosecutor Waris Ali Janjua appeared on behalf of the accountability watchdog.
The former prime minister’s lawyer said Ashraf could not appear before the court as he was unwell. Rejecting the request for his exemption, the judge said that Ashraf’s case had entered its final stages and he should have appeared before the court. NAB has said that the former prime minister misused his powers and appointed 437 people in GEPCO from his electoral constituency without any consideration for merit. Former secretary water and power Shahid Rafi, former directors of GEPCO’s boards of governors including Saleem Arif, Malik Razi Abbas and Wazir Ali were also involved in the same reference, which was filed in 2016. After issuing the arrest warrants, the court adjourned proceedings till September 18.
