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LAHORE, May 7: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Tuesday filed reference against six railway employees and a contractor in the uniform supply fraud worth Rs 200 million.
Two other accused, Khalid Shehzad, contractor’s accomplice and Khalid Aziz, head clerk, Railway Headquarters, are however still absconding.
One of the accused, Umer Haq, former deputy director, Railways, had made a confessional statement before a special magistrate for having received Rs 25 million as his share in the fraud. The NAB, Punjab, also made a recovery of a huge pile of uniforms worth Rs 78.4 milllion through contractor Shahrukh Mahmood.
The other culprits are former transport officer Abid Ali Shah, stores head clerk Riaz Ahmad, purchase officer Mohammad Hafeez, Accounts Officer Mohammad Ameer, senior auditor, Khalid Mahmood Tariq.
The contractor was supposed to supply uniforms worth Rs 211.365 million but he stopped supplies midway and prepared fake documents to have supplied the full lot in connivance with the officials.
The NAB also dug out that the supplier had earlier whisked away Rs 93.638 million through another fake supply contract.
LHC: An appellate bench of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of the appeal of former chief minister Manzoor Wattoo against his conviction by an accountability court.
NAB’s Deputy Prosecutor-General Ahmar Bilal Soofi was on his legs when the case was adjourned for May 14.
The DPG argued that Mr Wattoo misused his powers and issued directive for the allotments and also gave verbal instructions in this regard.
On the last hearing, S.M. Zafar had informed the bench that an accountability court of Lahore had convicted Mr Wattoo in an illegal plots allotment case and awarded him 18 months’ imprisonment and Rs1 million fine. The court had also barred Mr Wattoo from contesting general elections or holding any public office for 21 years.
Mr Zafar had pleaded that the sentence should be set aside and granted bail.
RANA TANVIR CASE: A member of the Ehtesab Appellate Bench-II of the Lahore High Court refused on Tuesday to hear an appeal of former MNA Rana Tanvir Hussain.
Justice Mian Saqib Nisar said that he has friendship with the appellant so he can not hear the appeal against the conviction by an accountability court in an illegal assets reference.
Justice Tassadaq Hussain Jillani is the other member of the bench.
Rana Tanvir Hussain submitted in his appeal that he was awarded 4 years imprisonment and Rs1 million fine for making illegal assets beyond his known sources of income. He pleaded not guilty and sought his release.—APP
