ISLAMABAD:
An accountability court on Monday granted one day exemption to former Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf from appearing before the court in a rental power corruption case.
Earlier the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed an application in the court to make the summaries of the Cabinet Division regarding the Naudero Rental Power Project-II as part of the original reference against the accused.
The bureau’s Special Prosecutor Tassaduq Hanif told the court that the bureau has obtained the summaries.
Judge Muhammad Bashir while accepting the plea issued notices to the respondents and adjourned the case till September 1.
The former premier Ashraf was accused of approving the project as minister for water and power. The 50mw project was ‘unsolicited’ and its approval was illegal, the NAB prosecutor contended.
The contract for the power project was granted to Walter, a US company. It was operational at the time of the start of investigations but generating power below par.
Investigations revealed that no separate machinery was purchased for the project.
The Ashraf was summoned by NAB officials multiple times for questioning in the case. According to the investigation report, the total liability in this case is Rs2.8 billion, of which Rs771 million has been recovered.
AEDB case
Meanwhile a division bench of Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday restored the Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) chief on his position suspending a single bench decision.
The division bench comprising Chief Justice Muhammad Anwar Khan Kasi and Justice Noorul Haq Qureshi suspended the single bench decision and restored him.
The AEDB Chief Executive Officer Dr Basharat Hasan was removed on the order of IHC judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 22nd, 2014.
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