KARACHI, April 4: Former chief minister of Sindh Syed Abdullah Shah was on Wednesday granted interim pre-arrest bail by the Sindh High Court in 10 more references filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against a surety of Rs500,000 each.

Two different division benches of the SHC heard Abdullah Shah's bail before arrest plea. The court also issued notice to the deputy prosecutor-general of NAB for comments.SHC's division bench comprising Justice Muhammad Afzal Soomro and Justice Rahmat Hussain Jaffery granted interim pre-arrest bail in eight different NAB references till April 17 while another division bench comprising Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani and Justice Ali Sain Dino Metlo granted interim pre-arrest bail in two references till April 18.Syed Abdullah Shah was charged with misusing power, committing corruption, involving in corrupt practices and allowing construction of high-rise buildings in relaxation of rules and ban imposed by the Sindh government during his tenure as chief minister.

His counsel Ismat Mehdi submitted that her client neither committed any offence nor the same was made out from the reference. Abdullah Shah's name was mentioned in the references as one of the accused merely due to his affiliation with a political party.

She stated that Abdullah Shah, suffering from pancreatic cancer, left Pakistan in 1997 for treatment. In his absence, the NAB started inquiry and filed references against him in order to harass and damage his political image while other co-accused in these cases were acquitted by trial court.

She stated her client had been seriously ill for the last many years and prayed to grant bail before arrest on medical grounds. On the last hearing, the former CM was produced before the court on wheelchair and after taking into consideration his physical fitness, the court exempted him from personal appearance.

SHC's division bench granting interim pre-arrest bail to him with a surety of Rs500,000 each issued notice to the deputy prosecutor-general of NAB for comments. It also directed him to approach the trial court for proceedings of the cases.

Meanwhile, SHC's division bench comprising Justice Muhammad Afzal Soomro and Justice Rehmat Hussain Jaffery, extended interim pre-arrest bail of Abdullah Shah in 17 different NAB references till April 17.—PPI