Former president Asif Ali Zardari was accused of receiving kickbacks worth Rs40 million from Sajjad Ahmad, a former chairman of Pakistan Steel Mills. PHOTO: REUTERS
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday accepted a plea by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the acquittal of former president and Pakistan People Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari in the Steel Mills corruption case.
A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry, accepted NABs’ plea for initiating preliminary hearings in the matter and issued notices to the respondents.
Submitting the plea, the NAB prosecutor stated that the former president stood accused of receiving kickbacks worth Rs40 million from Sajjad Ahmad, a former chairman of Pakistan Steel Mills. After hearing the prosecutor's arguments, the court adjourned the hearing for an indefinite period after issuing notices to parties.
Had been Zardari sentenced to seven years in prison with a fine of Rs40 million when Rawalpindi’s Accountability Court-I found him guilty of corruption and corrupt practices on September 12, 2002. Zardari subsequently challenged the conviction in the Lahore High Court, which acquitted him on September 10, 2004.
In December last year, an accountability court acquitted Zardari on two corruption references, Ursus tractors deal and ARY, filed by NAB 17 years ago.
Accountability Judge Muhammad Bashir pronounced the decision and observed that Zardari was not proven guilty in the case.
Zardari is facing five references filed by NAB 17 years ago, including the Ursus tractors deal, ARY case, Cotecna and SGS cases.
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@Parvez: Ineptness is a very polite word; they are corrupt to the hilt.
If NAB and our judicial system are unable to convict Mr.Zardari on even one count of corruption.........it speaks volumes about the ineptness of both of them.