Islamabad court seeks NAB report on Toshakhana vehicles case

The hearing involved references against Asif Zardari, Yousaf Raza Gillani, and Nawaz Sharif

The Accountability Court in Islamabad has requested a report from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) regarding the jurisdiction of the reference related to the Toshakhana vehicles.

The hearing, presided over by Judge Abida Sajjad, involved references against President Asif Zardari, Yousaf Raza Gillani, and Nawaz Sharif concerning the Toshakhana vehicles, Express News reported.

The lawyers for President Asif Zardari and Yousaf Raza Gillani, Arshad Tabrez, and the lawyer for Nawaz Sharif, Qazi Misbah, along with Pleader Rana Irfan, appeared before the Accountability Court.

Lawyer Qazi Misbah raised objections to the jurisdiction of the reference following the Supreme Court's recent ruling on NAB amendments.

In his arguments, Nawaz Sharif's lawyer stated that the reference concerning the Toshakhana vehicles was returned to NAB on December 21, 2022. He noted that the Supreme Court has recently made a ruling regarding NAB amendments, which implies that the current court lacks jurisdiction over the NAB reference.

Lawyer Qazi Misbah requested that the reference be returned to NAB following the Supreme Court's decision.

The Accountability Court instructed the defence lawyer to submit a request regarding the jurisdiction and adjourned the hearing on the reference until October 30.

In a reference filed in March 2020, the accountability watchdog alleged that during the term of then-PM Yousaf Raza Gilani, rules were violated to allow former president Asif Ali Zardari and ex-premier Nawaz to acquire luxury vehicles from the state’s gift repository.

It alleged that Gilani facilitated Zardari and Nawaz, claiming that he dishonestly relaxed the government's gift acceptance procedure in 2007.

The procedure stipulated that vehicles presented as gifts by foreign dignitaries shall not be allowed to be purchased by the recipients and be given to the central pool under the care of the Cabinet Division.

In June 2020, an accountability court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Nawaz, who had skipped hearings as he had begun his self-imposed exile in London.

In September 2020, the accountability court declared the PML-N supremo an absconder due to his continuous non-appearance in the Toshakhana case and ordered the confiscation of his property.

According to the anti-corruption body, Zardari and Nawaz retained the vehicles “against a nominal payment of 15% of their total value” through “dishonest and illegal means for their personal benefit and interest”.