ISLAMABAD: A two-member division bench of Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday asked the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to argue on the maintainability of a petition filed by former finance minister Shaukat Tareen seeking the quashment of corruption references against him.

Mr Tareen of the PPP is facing corruption charges in the Rental Power Projects (RPPs), the previous government introduced to ease hours-long loadshedding.

The division bench, comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, observed that the court would first decide the maintainability of the case, and directed NAB to submit a detailed reply to Mr Tareen’s acquittal plea by May 10.

Salman Aslam Butt, the counsel for Mr Tareen, argued that the reference was filed against his client after the apex court had taken cognizance of the case. He said it was the job of the NAB chairman as he approves a reference and then the trial court takes cognizance of it.

He said procedural mala fide was apparent in the case as an opinion was formed against Mr Tareen at a later stage.

NAB Additional Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi said Mr Tareen was one of the 12 accused persons and cannot seek the annulment of all the references.

He said the trial had commenced during which a charge sheet had been submitted and six out of the 43 witnesses had already been testified.

He said the accountability court had already dismissed an acquittal plea of Mr Tareen which he had filed under section 265-K (power of court to acquit accused at any stage) of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The court then directed the counsel for Mr Tareen to submit a copy of the petition filed with the trial court along with the final order sheet.

When Mr Butt said ‘formation of opinion’ had not yet been discussed, the NAB prosecutor said the petitioner should avail remedy by challenging the trial court’s order dismissing the acquittal application.

The petition maintained that NAB filed the references ‘without having concrete evidence against Mr Tareen’ and the court concerned had already indicted the petitioner and others.

Previously, Justice Farooq had asked if a case could be quashed before the trial was concluded. Subsequently, the court directed NAB and the counsel for Mr Tareen to argue over the question on the next date of hearing.

NAB had approved two references against former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, Mr Tareen and others in the RPP corruption cases in February 2014. NAB is investigating 12 cases relating to the RPPs and Mr Ashraf and Mr Tareen are facing several references in the RPP scandal.

NAB’s executive board had filed three references against the PPP leaders. However, it approved two references – Piranghaib, Multan, and Techno Engineering Services (Pvt) Ltd Sahuwal, Sialkot – for alleged corruption, corrupt practices and misuse of authority in the award of the RPP contracts.

Former federal secretary Shahid Rafi, Rana Amjad, Salman Siddique and others had also been included in the references.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2017