Sharif’s allegations baseless, says NAB

Also files reference against former army officers over ‘illegal’ lease of land for golf club

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Court (NAB) has dismissed as ‘baseless’ the allegations leveled against it by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif ‘during his media talk after every court proceeding’.

The anti-graft watchdog, in a statement on Monday, said the allegations that NAB was attempting to maneuver elections in the garb of accountability were intended to tarnish the bureau’s image. The statement said such allegations could not hinder NAB from working as per its defined mandate.

In a veiled reference, NAB called the allegations an election stunt and said the accuser[s] should opt for some other means. NAB added it had nothing to do with the elections or its results and it would continue to work without any fear.

“The drop scene of the accountability drama has already taken place. The real story based on facts has just started to unfold. Each and every individual involved in it will be exposed indiscriminately,” NAB resolved.



A NAB spokesperson later told The Express Tribune that the bureau’s statement was not aimed at any particular individual, but at all those bashing the watchdog for cheap publicity and political gains.

He said it had become a routine for some politicians and others to criticise NAB for no reason in a bid to hide their own shortcomings and corruption.

On the other hand, a spokesperson for the ruling PML-N dubbed NAB’s statement as a “reaction to recent back-to-back failures faced by Sharif’s opponents during cross-examination of the star prosecution witness against the Sharif family in Avenfield Apartments reference”.

He said the reality of references against the Sharif family had been badly exposed in recent days and the people of Pakistan had rejected the “false propaganda against Sharifs in the garb of accountability”.