Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Hamza Shahbaz on Thursday rebuked National Accountability Bureau (NAB) officials for tapping millions through plea bargains.
Talking to the media, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) veteran lashed out at the anti-graft body over its policies causing economic upheaval. “Plea bargains are not fair. Every official from the bureau embezzles huge sums of money through it,” he claimed.
The PML-N leader reiterated that nobody had been able to prove pennyworth of corruption against himself, Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif. “Imran should fear the day when the NAB foments corruption scandals against him,” he added.
Comparing Malik Mansha Khokar alias Mansha Bomb and the accountability bureau, the opposition leader said there was no difference between the two. “Both function the same way,” he said. On the plight of the common man, Hamza said inflation was at an all-time high, adding that investors were no longer interest in trade with Pakistan.
Earlier, the Lahore High Court (LHC) extended Hamza’s interim bail until May 8. Hamza, along with his lawyers, attended the hearing amid tight security arrangements made in and around the high court.
From the petitioner’s side, three lawyers – Amjad Pervaiz, Salman Butt and Azam Nazir Tarar – appeared before the court in three different references filed by the NAB pertaining to assets beyond income, Saaf Pani project and Ramzan Sugar Mills.
Lawyer Salman Butt was representing Hamza in assets beyond income case. The LHC ordered the NAB prosecutor to produce documents in the cases and inform the court regarding availability of documents in the references.
Butt informed the LHC judge that the documents, which were considered part of the reference, were not attached in the case. He added that the case could not be pursued without completion of the documents.
The NAB prosecutor argued that the anti-corruption watchdog would have to investigate into offshore companies and foreign transactions of Hamza. The investigators were tracing out persons and other sources used to transact money, the official said. “The court had directed to inform Hamza 10 days in advance regarding his arrest, while the statement regarding the documents is yet to be recorded.”
Butt said his client was not informed about the reasons behind his arrest in the assets’ case, and related documents should be provided to him. “How can we challenge the case in a court if we are not being given documents? The material, which is being used against an accused, cannot be hidden from the person,” he said.
“If it is a case of money laundering, the NAB is not authorised to arrest his client without seeking permission from the magistrate,” he added.
The NAB prosecutor said complaints were received against Shehbaz Sharif, Hamza Shahbaz and Salman Shahbaz. The Financial Monitoring Unit had also spotted suspicious transactions, but its report was secret.
The court asked the NAB prosecutor whether contents of the report would be made part of the case. To this, the official replied by saying that facts would surface after the investigation.
The LHC judge remarked that the institution should make it clear whether the report would be used as evidence in the case or not. The official affirmed that the probe would be conducted on the basis of the report.
