The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Wednesday arrested former Balochistan food minister Asfandyar Kakar on charges of embezzlement.

NAB officials arrested Kakar ─ who is suspected of misappropriating assets from the province's wheat quota ─ after the rejection of his bail application in the Balochistan High Court (BHC) today. The anti-corruption body also arrested a former deputy director food Balochistan in connection with the case.

NAB accused the former minister and former deputy director of inflicting financial losses of over Rs2 billion to the national exchequer.

Nearly three years ago, NAB had filed three references against the accused former food minister regarding missing of 256,000 bags of 100 kilogrammes of wheat from a store in Pishin.

The former minister was shifted to the regional NAB headquarter amid tight security from BHC premises.

The accountability court had already issued warrants for Kakar's arrest and the accused had approached the BHC to seek bail.

Kakar had served as a food minister in the provincial cabinet of former chief minister Nawab Aslam Raisani.

He was elected on the ticket of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) from Pishin district of Balochistan.