Faryal Talpur remanded in NAB custody for nine days

Accountability court rejects NAB's request for two-week remand of PPP leader, who was arrested on June 14

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Faryal Talpur was on Saturday remanded in the National Accountability Bureau's custody for nine days.

The nine-day remand was granted by an accountability court in Islamabad after NAB requested the court for a 14-day physical remand.

The PPP leader would now be presented in the accountability court on June 24.

Talpur, the sister of former president Asif Ali Zardari, is one of the main accused in the fake accounts case. She was placed under house arrest on June 14 as NAB officials declared her F-8 residence in Islamabad a sub-jail.



Earlier this week, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) dismissed pre-arrest bail requests filed by Zardari and Talpur. The former president was arrested on Monday and remanded in NAB custody till June 21.

PPP Co-Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has strongly condemned the arrests and said his party’s leadership was jailed in order to divert the attention of the masses from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's ‘anti-people’ budget.

“The government has arrested the political leaders to divert your [masses] attention from its economic terrorism…to get its anti-people budget approved from parliament,” Bilawal told a press conference at Zardari House in Islamabad on Friday.

“[Both] Asif Ali Zardari and Faryal Talpur were arrested without any conviction against them,” he claimed. “Zardari was arrested the day the government released the Economic Survey 2019, which highlighted PTI’s economic performance… the worst in history.”

NAB is investigating the senior PPP leadership in pursuance of the Supreme Court’s verdict in a case pertaining to money laundering of billions through fake accounts.

Other accused include Omni Group’s Anwar Majeed and his son Abdul Ghani Majeed, and former Pakistan Stock Exchange chairman Hussain Lawai.