LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Wednesday told the Lahore High Court that former principal secretary to prime minister Fawad Hassan Fawad owned a plaza in Rawalpindi valued at Rs5 billion and 14 “benami” bank accounts.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan was hearing bail petitions of Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif in Ramzan Sugar Mills case and that of Mr Fawad in Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme.

The NAB alleged that Shahbaz Sharif being chief minister of Punjab had issued a directive for construction of a drain in Chiniot district primarily for the use of Ramzan Sugar Mills owned by his sons. It said Rs200 million were spent on it from public money.

Fawad, the then secretary (implementation) to the chief minister, had been accused of being involved in cancellation of lawful award of the housing scheme in a bid to give the same to a company of his choice.

During the hearing of Fawad’s bail, NAB special prosecutor Akram Qureshi told the bench that Fawad received Rs50m as bribe from the company of Kamran Kiyani, brother of former army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani, through bank accounts of his brother and sister-in-law.

He said Fawad wanted to award contract of the Ashiana housing scheme to Kiyani’s company, however, it was not happened later. He said assets of Fawad were beyond his known sources of income.

On the bail petition of Shahbaz in the sugar mills case, the bench posed a query to both prosecution and the defence that as to how it will be determined whether the drain in question was constructed for personal benefit or for the benefit of public at large.

The bench further sought feasibility report prepared for the construction of the drain and record of such drain project, if any, launched in Chiniot and other districts of the province.

The bench deferred the hearing on the bail petitions of both Shahbaz and Fawad on the request of the NAB prosecutor.

PTA: The federal government on Wednesday told the Lahore High Court that posts of chairman, member (technical) and member (finance) of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had been advertised by the cabinet division after completion of the tenure of the incumbents.

An assistant attorney general filed a written report before a division bench seized with a matter regarding reappointment of the PTA chairman.

Representing the petitioner, Advocate Sheraz Zaka had argued that Amir Bajwa was an acting chairman of the PTA and was being re-appointed by the government as mentioned in the advertisement after completion of his four-year tenure. He said it will be against the law and judgements of the Supreme Court.

The counsel said the superior courts always discouraged ad hoc appointments in regulatory bodies. He said the process for the appointment of regular chairman of PTA had not been completed for the past one year and hence the court should interfere in the matter.

The government in its reply further stated that after completion of the tenure of the chairman there will be no re-appointment as new advertisement had been issued for new recruitment after completion of four-year tenure.

In light of the government’s reply, the bench headed by Justice Shams Mahmood Mirza disposed of the petition.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2019