Zardari granted exemption from appearance in two cases

An accountability court (AC) in Islamabad has approved former president Asif Ali Zardari’s application seeking exemption from personal appearance in the Park Lane and Thatta water supply scheme references.

Both the references are offshoots of the fake bank accounts case. Last month, the AC had indicted the PPP co-chairperson in both the references.

On Wednesday, the case was heard by AC judge Azam Khan. The PPP co-chairperson did not appear before the court and submitted his plea requesting the judge to grant him exemption from appearance, which was approved by the court.

Hussain Lawai, Taha Raza and other accused appeared before the court.

Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Joint Registrar Companies Ahsan Aslam, who is a witness in the case, recorded his statement before the court and presented the record regarding the registration of Park Lane.

His statement could not be completed and would continue in the next hearing.

The court adjourned the hearing of the case until October 28.

The former president allegedly got a loan of Rs1.5 billion released to his front company Parthenon Private Limited with ill intention and the money was later transferred for his personal use through fake bank accounts.

The NAB accused the former president of causing a loss of Rs3.77 billion to the national exchequer through these fake bank account transactions.

The anti-graft watchdog alleged that the accused created benami properties through Park Lane using Parthenon Private Limited as the front company.

Zardari’s counsel Farooq H Naek had argued that the PPP co-chairperson was a director of M/s Park Lane, but he resigned from the company in 2008 before assuming the office of president of Pakistan.

He said the board of directors of the company accepted the resignation though it could not communicate the matter to the SECP in time.

On Wednesday, the AC also recorded the statement of Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) Imran Mehmood, who is a witness of the NAB, in Thatta Water Supply reference.

Mehmood stated that he appeared before the NAB on March 2019 in investigation pertaining to the Harish and Company.

He asked the court to give the details of tax returns of Anwar Majeed and Abdul Ghani Majeed to the investigation officer.

The court summoned two more witnesses of NAB Ali Raza and Tariq Majeed on October 29 for recording their statements.

Meanwhile, AC judge Muhammad Bashir deferred the decision on the applications of former aviation minister Sardar Mehtab Abbasi and others seeking acquittal in the reference pertaining to illegal appointments in PIA until November 24.

Former PIA CEO Musharraf Rasool, Irfan Elahi and Raheed Ahmed have been nominated as accused in the case.