KARACHI, Dec 20: An accountability court on Saturday adjourned the hearing of a NAB reference pertaining to illegal recruitments in PIA against former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and others on a request by the defence counsel.

When the matter was taken up, adjournment request was sought by defence counsel Sarfaraz Tanoli of co-accused AVM (Retd) Omer Farooq, submitting that he was ill and was unable to appear before the court.

The court, comprising Judge Parkash Lal Ambwani, however, raised query regarding 342 CrPC statement of Benazir Bhutto and observed that the statement had not been taken on record and directed the defence counsel to submit a clarification in this regard.

The said matter will now be taken up in the next hearing which was fixed by consent for Jan 3.

NAB reference was filed against Benazir Bhutto and others in May 1997 on illegal recruitments in Pakistan International Airlines during her government.

It was charged that the accused in collusion with each others, made illegal appointment of 1393 persons in different cadres in PIAC. The prosecution alleged that the accused posted persons abroad and made promotions in violation of rules and regulations. AVM (Retd) Omer Farooq, ex-MD of PIA, ex-principal secretary to prime minister Ahmed Sadiq, Director, PIAC, Ghulam Qadir Shah Jatoi, Naheed Khan and Najmul Hasan were named as co-accused in said reference.

—PPI