Ten-day remand: Five ZTBL officials given in NAB custody

PESHAWAR: An Accountability Court handed over a former assistant vice-president and four other officials of the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Ltd (ZTBL) to the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Monday on a 10-day physical remand on charges of embezzling loans to farmers.

NAB’s prosecutor Hasnain Tariq argued that the suspects were accused of misappropriating Rs202 million in agricultural loans.

The prosecutor explained that the suspects had secured thumb impressions of people on Benazir Income Support forms.

He stated that they also acquired copies of their national identity cards and pictures and issued loans in their names on fake cheque books.

He said that loans could not be issued for barren lands while the suspects issued loans on such land in violation of the bank’s rules and regulations.

He argued that loans were even issued to such people who didn’t own any agricultural land while loans issued in their names were embezzled.

He requested the court to grant 10-day physical remand for investigation.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2017.