PESHAWAR, March 15: An accountability court here on Friday indicted former NWFP chief minister Aftab Ahmad Sherpao in the Hayatabad plot case.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the offence and decided to stand trial. The court presided over by Said Maroof Khan fixed March 22 for next hearing and summoned four prosecution witnesses.

Senior advocate Zafar Abbas Zaidi appeared for the defence. Sherpao was co-accused in the present reference with the prime accused, Jawed Alam Khanzada, a former secretary of housing and physical planning department. The reference was filed by the National Accountability Bureau on April 3, 2000, but as Sherpao was absconding at the time, he could not be tried in this case.

Khanzada, against whom another reference about his illegal assets was pending before the accountability court, entered into plea-bargain with the NAB and his application was accepted on his agreement to pay Rs65 million to the state.

Charges have already been framed against Sherpao in two other references pertaining to illegal appointments in education department and Ring Road land acquisition scam. The high court had reserved judgment in his appeal filed against sentence of three years imprisonment slapped on him by an accountability court in absentia for wilfully evading arrest.

Contrary to previous proceedings, the law enforcement agencies allowed the accused to meet his friends, relatives and party leaders and activists. 0 Meanwhile, Sherpao said that if President Pervez Musharraf intends to remain president of Pakistan he should adopted a constitutional course.

While talking to journalists, he said that for removing any uncertainty about the scheduled elections the government should announced a date.

About the formation of a national government, he said that now only six months were left for the scheduled elections, therefore, there was no need for a caretaker government.

About the news regarding the return of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, he said that if they were aspirants of contesting future polls they should return to the country and surrender before the law.

He added that the government should not create hurdles in their return and let the law takes its due course.

The former chief minister expressed confidence in the accountability process.