Summons PPP chief in connection with probe into transfer of Rs1.22b to JV Opal. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD: The country’ stop accountability watchdog, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), has summoned Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to quiz him with regard to an allegedly shady transfer of a hefty amount from account of a company he has shares in.
NAB has asked the PPP chairman to appear before an investigation team at its Rawalpindi office on December 24. The watchdog is probing into a transfer of Rs1.22 billion to JV Opal from an account of Zardari Group of Companies.
Bilawal owns 25% shares in Zardari Group. His father and PPP co-chairman, Asif Ali Zardari, and aunt, Faryal Talpur, also have shares in the business enterprise.
Both Zardari and Talpur are among the key accused in a multi-billion rupees money laundering scandal that surfaced last year and are facing multiple corruption references at accountability courts.
Both the siblings have been recently granted bail after months’ long incarceration.
Bilawal last appeared before a NAB team on May 30 when he was questioned regarding kickbacks received by the Zardari Group of Companies. Reportedly, he was given a questionnaire with 32 queries.
NAB started its investigations into what is also dubbed as ‘fake accounts case’ on order of the Supreme Court’ which forwarded a joint investigation team’s (JIT) report to the accountability watchdog with directions to investigate into the scandal and file references against the accused.
FBR seizes property, accounts worth Rs20b
In December 2015, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) began a discreet investigation into certain bank accounts through which multi-billion rupee transactions had been made.
The probe was initially shelved but resumed almost a year and a half later with the FIA’s State Bank circle initiating a formal inquiry in January 2018. By June, the FIA had several high-profile names on its list but was unable to make headway–for several reasons.
It was at his point that the Supreme Court intervened and then chief justice (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar took suo motu notice of the ‘slow progress’ in the money-laundering case.
In July, Zardari’s close aides Hussain Lawai, Taha Raza and two others were arrested. Subsequently, the first case was registered in the mega-corruption scandal.
The then CJP ordered the formation of a JIT to quicken the pace of the investigation. The JIT identified 11,500 bank accounts and 924 account holders at the start of their investigation. The JIT report was later sent to NAB.
Durrani case
NAB Rawalpindi has also expedited investigation against the former federal minister for housing Akram Khan Durrani in an illegal appointments case and has summoned former federal secretary housing and works Arbab Shahrukh on Monday, December 23.
According to the sources, apart from Shahrukh NAB has also summoned 30 other officers, who have been asked to bring with them all the relevant record.
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