PIA recruitment case adjourned till August 29

Accused includes PML-N leader Sardar Mehtab Khan Abbasi, former aviation secretary Irfan Elahi

ISLAMABAD: An Accountability Court (AC) on Thursday directed all accused in a graft reference pertaining to alleged illegal recruitments in Pakistan International Airline (PIA) to ensure their attendance in the country on August 29.

The four accused, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Sardar Mehtab Khan Abbasi, former aviation secretary Irfan Elahi, former chief executive officer (CEO) of PIA Musharraf Rasool and Tariq Pasha, appeared before Accountability Judge Muhammad Bashir on Thursday.

At the outset of the hearing, the court directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to share copies of the reference with the accused so that a date could be fixed for their indictment on next hearing.

The court also issued arrest warrant of another accused, Raheel Ahmed, for not attending the proceedings.

However, the judge asked the accused to submit a request for cancellation of arrest warrant as he later appeared in court. The court adjourned hearing of the case till August 29.