MULTAN: The Lahore High Court’s Multan Bench on Tuesday reprimanded the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) local head after officials arrested an accused in violation of court order.

The court remarked that poor investigation by NAB favoured the accused.

The remarks were given during the hearing of a petition filed by Abdul Ghani allegedly involved in a corruption case related to the construction of Benazir Bhutto Bridge over the River Indus linking Chachran Sharif with Kot Mithan.

The accused filed a petition stating that the NAB authorities were harassing him and trying to arrest him despite the fact that no such order had been issued by the court against him. The investigation officer and NAB’s legal officer were summoned by the court on Monday to know if any arrest warrant of the accused had been issued by the competent authority and the court was informed that neither such order had been issued nor the bureau intended to arrest the accused.

The court directed the NAB authorities to not harass the accused. The NAB officials arrested him soon after he left the courtroom.

Chaudhry Daud Ahmed Wains, the counsel for the accused, immediately informed the court about the act of the NAB officials. The court directed NAB Director General (Multan) Atiqur Rehman to appear in person before the court on Tuesday.

“Due to lack of proper legal assistance by the NAB officers, the national culprits escape punishment. When the required evidences to send any accused on jail or granting his physical remand are not available in the record, nobody could stop the accused from taking benefit,” the court remarked while addressing the DG.

The DG tendered his apology while assuring the court that the bureau would act carefully in future.

While granting two-day interim bail to the accused, the court directed the NAB authorities to reconsider the matter of issuing arrest warrant of the accused after examining the documents available with him in his favour.

The double bench comprises Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Asjad Javed Ghurral.

The NAB is investigating the officials of the National Highway Authority and some private persons for allegedly committing corruption in the construction of the bridge.

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2018