ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday confirmed interim bail of former president Asif Ali Zardari in a case of about Rs8.3 billion suspicious transactions from the joint accounts of Bahria Town’s assistant private secretary Mushtaq and Zain Malik into fake accounts.
A two-member bench of IHC comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani announced the verdict after hearing arguments of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman’s lawyer Farooq H Naek and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi.
Naek contended before the court that his client is unable to appear before the court due to his ailing health. Zardari had to be hospitalised on Jan 10 after his health worsened, he added.
At this, Justice Farooq asked the NAB prosecutor about the status of the case, to which the latter replied that the reference is yet to be filed against the former president.
The NAB prosecutor said that Zardari has not yet submitted his reply to a call-up notice given to him in 2019. He pleaded with the court to dismiss the accused’s bail petition.
The high court had on June 18, 2019 granted pre-arrest interim bail to Zardari in the case.
Earlier in January last, the IHC constituted a medical board to ascertain the health condition of Zardari. Initially, the former president sought bail on merit. However, the petition was amended after it was fixed for hearing before the bench in September last year.
Accused Zain Malik, son-in-law of property tycoon Malik Riaz, has secured release in three under-trial cases and three investigations through plea bargain with NAB.
Zain undertook to mortgage his six properties and pay Rs4 billion in one case, Rs170 million in another and Rs37 million in the third case to NAB, Rawalpindi Directorate, in three years. He will pay the amount in instalments at an interval of three months.
