LAHORE: The accountability court on Tuesday adjourned hearing of the Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme case till April 29 and also recorded statements of two prosecution witnesses in the Ramzan Sugar Mills case.

The court also granted exemption from appearance to Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif till May 8 on medical grounds.

Accountability court judge Najamul Hassan resumed hearing of the Ashiana housing case and questioned how Mr Sharif could leave the country without seeking permission from the court.

Counsel Advocate Amjad Pervaiz pleaded before the court that Mr Sharif had to go abroad for medical checkup and he should be exempted from appearance till May 8. He said his client was not asking for permanent exemption from hearing and also submitted medical reports of Mr Sharif before the court.

The National Accountability Bureau prosecutors presented Riaz Hussain as witness in the Ashiana case to have his statement recorded.

In the Ramzan Sugar Mills case, Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Hamza Shahbaz attended the hearing and appealed for an early leave as the assembly session was under way.

The judge allowed Mr Shahbaz to proceed and continued hearing of the case to record statements of two prosecution witnesses -- Shahbaz Ali Khan and Tariq Masood.

Talking to the media outside the court, Hamza said the current government’s policies had wreaked havoc with the country in just eight months, as inflation had paralysed the public.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2019