NAB under fire in Senate session

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) came under intense criticism in the Senate on Friday, with senators accusing the bureau of being involved in political victimisation.

During the ‘question hour’, Law Minister Babar Awan informed the House that during 2000-09, NAB had recovered more than Rs 225 billion. Out of the recovered amount, Rs910.1 million were distributed among NAB officials as reward money, he added. Awan also informed the Senate that Rs1.2 billion were distributed as scholarships for the children of NAB officials including some Majors General and Lieutenants General.

Senator Ghulam Ali of the JUI-F said former president Pervez Musharraf had formed NAB as an instrument for, what he called “kidnapping for ransom”. Ali said that Asif Ali Zardari, Yousaf Raza Gilani, Nawaz Sharif and Naveed Qamar were also jailed as part of a political victimisation campaign undertaken by NAB. He asked the government to take action against those NAB officials who were involved in such acts. PPP Secretary-General Senator Jahangir Badar agreed with Senator Ali.

Badr asked the House to form a committee to probe NAB’s affairs. He said his friend Mian Arshad was killed in a NAB torture cell even though there was no case against him. The House agreed to form a committee to probe misuse of authority by NAB. Names of the members of the committee will be announced later by the Senate chairman. The upper House will resume its session on Monday.