PESHAWAR, Sept 9: Many an acquittal in high-profile accountability cases has put the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in an awkward position.

According to available record, in the NWFP alone 12 people accused  of being involved in corruption cases by the NAB were acquitted.

A total of 52 people were acquitted by different courts across the country, investigations carried out by Dawn revealed.

Those acquitted by courts in the NWFP were involved in white collar offences, who were freed due to lack of evidence or the prosecution’s failure to prove charges against them.

Twenty-one people were acquitted in Sindh, 7 in Punjab and 3 in Balochistan, sources said. Some 9 people were acquitted by the court in Rawalpindi only, they added.

“We are helpless as our job is only to bring cases to the trial court,” said a NAB prosecutor.

The NAB had filed cases against 5 chief ministers, 4 MNAs, 8 MPAs and 4 senators in the NWFP, sources said.

The record shows that cases were filed and references were brought against Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, Azam Hoti, Habibullah Kundi, Naseem-ur-Rehman, Habib ullah Tanoli, Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan Abbasi, Ghaniur Rehman, Haji Kabir Khan and some others.

Federal Minister for Water and Power Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao was acquitted in all four cases by the appellate as well as accountability courts.

Mr Sherpao was acquitted in all cases as he was not directly involved in them. The cases in which he was charged included: illegal appointments in the education department; Ring Road land acquisition scam; Hayatabad plot allotment case; and his conviction in absentia under section 31-A of the NAB Ordinance, 1999.

In all these references he was not the prime accused.

At the time when these cases were filed, Mr Sherpao had alleged the NAB was after big names to lend credibility to its accountability process. Subsequently, he left the country to escape what he had called  the NAB witch-hunt. He, however, returned to the country and was immediately arrested.

Senator Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan Abbasi, former chief minister, was allegedly involved in the wheat scandal. The accountability court sentenced him to 14 years rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs20 million, but the Rawalpindi bench of the Lahore High Court acquitted him as the prosecution failed to prove charges against him as well. He remained in prison for about three years.

Habibur Rehman Tanoli, a former provincial minister and father of MPA Ghazala Habib of the PPP ( Sherpao) was accused along with Aftab Sherpao of illegal appointments.

The NAB brought another reference against Mr Tanoli in the accountability court for possessing assets disproportionate to his known source of income and the accountability court convicted him, but he was freed by the Peshawar High Court.

Last month, former MNA of the Awami National Party Naseemur Rehman was charged with possessing property disproportionate to his known source of income. 

He appeared before the Supreme Court after having remained underground for about three years and was granted bail. Later on, he was acquitted by the  court.

Also, almost all the accused in Ghazi Barotha hydel power station case were released either on bail or charges against them were withdrawn.

“Initially, when the NAB Ordinance was promulgated in 1999 and the NAB was constituted, courts very rarely favoured the accused, but now they seem to favour the accused in important cases,” a NAB official regretted.