‘Illegal’ gas contracts: NAB directed to file documents in corruption case

Suspects had approached high court against likely indictment from lower court

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court directed on Tuesday the National Accountability Bureau to file documents related to the alleged involvement of senior serving and retired officers of the Sui Southern Gas Company, the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) and Jamshoro Joint Venture Limited (JJVL) in a Rs17 billion corruption reference.

Headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto, the two-judge bench passed this direction while hearing applications moved by former OGDCL managing director Basharat Mirza and JJVL's Iqbal Z Ahmed seeking provision of documents regarding their alleged involvement in the scam.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had filed the reference against former petroleum minister Dr Asim Hussain and others in an accountability court alleging their involvement in multi-billion rupee corruption. According to the bureau, JJVL was allowed to process gas from five fields in lower Sindh without conducting an open auction, signing agreements and other necessary procedures.

The prosecution alleges that the private company was given the contract without an open auction being held, agreements being signed or other necessary procedures required by the law to make the process transparent.

During the course of this alleged illegal process, a total loss of Rs17.3 billion was caused to the national exchequer due to the misuse of authority, according to the NAB.

As the accountability court was set to frame corruption charges, the co-accused approached the high court fearing their indictment. The petitioners submitted that the trial court had to indict them in the corruption reference, however, the detailed documents of the reference were not being provided to them along with a copy of a related judgment of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

They submitted that the prosecution was hiding the IHC judgment on the JJVL matter and did not make it part of the case. Therefore, they pleaded the judges direct the trial court to provide complete copies of case documents, including judgments of the IHC, to them before the indictment. Till then, a direction was sought for the accountability court to restrain from indicting the co-accused.

The bench then directed the NAB to file the complete documents of the case at the next hearing on October 20.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2016.