LAHORE: The ministry of interior has told the Lahore High Court that it included PML-N sitting MPA and former provincial minister Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan in blacklist on the recommendation of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

It said the NAB requested the ministry to place Mr Khan on the blacklist out of apprehensions of his escape abroad to avoid inquiry into alleged corruption in the Punjab Youth Festival.

The ministry submitted the reply to a petition filed by the former minister challenging his blacklisting by the government.

In this case, the high court had already restrained the NAB from taking coercive action against Mr Khan.

Meanwhile, Mr Khan also filed a civil miscellaneous application with the court for placing on record his reply to the questionnaire served to him by the NAB.

He contended that the questionnaire he received from the NAB proved that it was just fulfilling the formality as it had no any concrete evidence against him. He said the NAB was just playing for the gallery and wanted to keep him in a loop with some political agenda as it had been claimed by many stalwarts of the PTI government.

He said the NAB had in 2017 closed the inquiry against him and reopened the same in violation of laws. He also presented a copy of the bureau’s executive board meeting’s minutes that approved closing of the inquiry into allegations of a video clipping/illegal gratification, misuse of funds for flood donations and accumulation of assets beyond means.

He said the board, however, referred the matter to the extent of alleged violation of procurement rules by the Punjab Sports Board in youth festivals to the chief secretary for necessary action.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi will resume hearing of the petition on Wednesday (today).

Published in Dawn, July 24th, 2019