ISLAMABAD: The Natio­nal Accountability Bureau (NAB) has summoned Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Dec 15 in a case relating to their assets and wealth.

Both PML-Q leaders have been summoned for the second time in a month, a senior NAB official told Dawn on Wednesday. They appeared before NAB investigators in Lahore on Nov 6 and recorded their statements.

The Chaudhry cousins from Gujrat are facing inquiries for allegedly owning assets that NAB says are disproportionate to their known sources of income.

The two PML-Q leaders have been summoned in connection with a case filed by NAB 12 years ago, before the government of former president retired Gen Pervez Musharraf.

At present Chaudhry Shujaat is busy in efforts to reunite different factions of the Pakistan Muslim League to give the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) a tough time in the general elections which are scheduled to be held next year.

The Chaudhrys of Gujrat are likely to be exonerated in the case because NAB has reportedly found nothing concrete against them.

Chaudhry Shujaat remained prime minister in 2004 for a brief period while his cousin, Chaudhry Elahi, served as the chief minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007.

Before joining the government of Gen Musharraf, Chaudhry Shujaat and Chaudhry Elahi were associated with the PML-N.

In a statement, Mr Elahi said that he had told NAB everything relating to his wealth, adding that he was ready to appear again before the bureau.

“I am not scared of any investigation. This is not new for us, as during the Bhutto government, my family faced 135 cases. I have always respected institutions,” Mr Elahi said.

The PML-Q leader said that he had faced three murder cases in his political life which were filed with malicious intentions.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2017