SHC orders State Bank to justify blocking of citizen’s account

Lawyer claims the SBP decision was based on United Nations’ list of suspicious persons

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC)  ordered the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and Bank Islami to submit a reply in the case regarding freezing the account of a citizen, Attaur Rehman. A two-member bench headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar heard the plea.

The lawyer representing SBP said that Rehman's name was on the United Nations' list of suspicious persons and his account had been frozen after observation of the federal government.

Bail rejected

The Sindh High Court (SHC) rejected the bail pleas of Gul Sher Chachar and Inamul Deen Marwat, accused in a case pertaining to selling urea fertiliser in the black market and incurring more than Rs140 million in losses to the national exchequer. The bail plea of another accused, Afaqul Deen, however, was accepted.

A two-member bench hearing the case in its verdict said that due to evidence of corruption against Chachar and Marwat, bail cannot be granted. According to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the accused, working at the National Fertilisers Corporation Limited (NFCL), gave contracts against the terms and conditions to two companies. 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2018.