A division bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday sought a detailed response from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) by April 13 over the post-arrest bail plea of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif in the money laundering case.
As the proceedings began, the bench headed by Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar sought para-wise comments from the bureau over the plea, put forth on medical grounds and hardship.
The petitioner maintained in his plea that he has been in NAB’s custody for a long time, but the bureau has miserably failed to collect “an iota of evidence of corruption, corrupt practice, kickback, commission, misuse or abuse of public office for personal gain throughout his career, notwithstanding the thorough and protracted probe with brute state apparatus, resources and infrastructure at its disposal.”
Shehbaz contended that he is 70 years old, suffering from multiple diseases, including cancer, but that the conduct of the jail authorities and health department has been callous and inhuman as unnecessary and unjustifiable delays were caused in making the requisite arrangements, which deteriorated and affected his health.
With respect to battling cancer and other ailments at this juncture of age, the petitioner added, “The detention may prove to be hazardous to his life or cause irreversible and irreparable harm to his health.” Hence, he maintained that he was entitled to a bail at the anvil of fundamental right of life and liberty.
The PML-N leader implored that he has been behind bars since September 28, 2020, adding that the trial is still at an initial stage.
He noted that as many as 110 prosecution witnesses were cited in the calendar, whereas the references comprised hefty and voluminous records, spanning 58 volumes.
He highlighted that as per the report submitted by the trial court before the top court in the bail matter of the co-accused, it would require at least 10 to 12 months for the trial’s conclusion with full cooperation by the prosecution and representation of the 10 persons accused through their counsels.
The progress in the trial, Shehbaz added, is minimal as the case is still at the stage of recording testimonies of prosecution witnesses, notwithstanding that there was no fault on part of the petitioner in the peculiar circumstances and the case of the petitioner had become a case of hardship. Subsequently, he prayed to the court that he be granted post-arrest bail, at which the court sought the bureau’s response.
Separately, the high court asked NAB to submit comments on a petition moved by PML-N leader Khawaja Muhammad Asif seeking post-arrest bail.
An LHC division bench, headed by Justice Dogar, took up the bail petition in the assets beyond means and money laundering inquiry against Asif and sought para-wise comments from NAB by April 14.
After a preliminary hearing, the bench put off the hearing until April 14.
Asif through his counsel Barrister Haider Rasul Mirza filed the petition which stated that NAB had arrested him from Islamabad last year on December 29. He contended that the corruption watchdog apprehended him despite the fact that he had provided it all the relevant records regarding his assets. Besides, the same record is also available with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
He contended that during his 22-day physical remand with NAB, he was not confronted with any direct or circumstantial evidence that would construct a case of owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
The application, under section 24 (d) of NAO, filed by respondent Assistant Director NAB Muhammad Ikram, for seeking physical remand of the petitioner did not disclose any incriminating material supporting the alleged commission of a crime under section 9 (a) (v) of NAO.
“Mere ownership of property/assets did not constitute an offence under section 9 (a) (v). It is the failure to explain the source of funds that points towards the commission of the offence. The inquiry is being conducted on conjectures and surmises with a view to rope the petitioner into baseless and unfounded allegations,” claimed Asif in his petition. He pleaded with the bench to order his release on bail.
