LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Friday told an accountability court that a reference would be filed within two or three days against Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif, former principal secretary to prime minister Fawad Hassan Fawad, former Lahore Development Authority head Ahad Cheema and others in Ashiana-i-Iqbal scam.

During the proceedings on judicial remand of the suspects, a NAB prosecutor told the court that the reference had been approved by the chairman and would be filed within two or three days.

Earlier, the jail officials produced seven suspects including Fawad and Cheema before the court on expiry of their judicial remand. Mr Sharif was not brought to court as he was in Islamabad on transit remand to attend a session of the National Assembly. The court extended judicial remand of the suspects till Jan 3.

NBP: The accountability court also extended till Jan 4 the judicial remand of National Bank of Pakistan vice president Usman Saeed in a billion of rupees corruption case.

The investigating officer told the court that a supplementary reference would be filed soon against the suspect. He said investigation into misappropriation of huge money in foreign exchange department of NBP Lahore’s main branch was still in process.

The NAB alleged that the vice president in connivance with the owners of 13 mega business groups had embezzled the bank funds to the tune of Rs3 billion.

The vice president of the bank claimed that the business groups blackmailed him and obtained money from him on a promise to return, which was never fulfilled.

Published in Dawn, December 22nd, 2018