Khursheed Shah's judicial remand extended by 15 days by Sukkur accountability court

Published November 23, 2019
PPP stalwart Khursheed Shah arrives in an accountability court in Sukkur. — Photo courtesy screengrab from video provided by author
PPP stalwart Khursheed Shah arrives in an accountability court in Sukkur. — Photo courtesy screengrab from video provided by author

PPP leader Khursheed Ahmed Shah was taken to jail on Friday for another 15-days after an accountability court in Sukkur extended his judicial remand.

He will be produced before the court on December 7.

Shah is being probed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for allegedly amassing assets beyond known means. During today's hearing, NAB counsel urged the court to extend Shah's judicial remand by 15 days. The court accepted the request.

Shah's lawyer told the court that his client's mobile phone had been taken away and requested that it be returned. NAB's counsel responded that the phone had been sent for a forensic examination and will be returned to Shah once it has been examined.

After the hearing, in response to a journalist's question about the proceedings of the case, Shah said: "I will talk openly once 90 days are over."

When asked if he thought that the allegations leveled against him were part of a "political conspiracy", he said: "You are journalists and live in Sukkur. You can investigate yourself."

The MNA was produced before the court in an ambulance from the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), Sukkur, where he is undergoing treatment. His hospital room in NICVD was declared a sub-jail, earlier this month.

Strict security measures were put in place ahead of Shah's arrival. PPP workers and leaders including Nafeesa Shah and Owais Qadir were also present in the court.

The PPP leader was arrested by NAB's Sukkur and Rawalpindi teams in September this year.

Multiple corruption cases against him are under investigation with NAB. In 2012, an accountability court had directed NAB to file a reference against him on a complaint pertaining to alleged accumulation of illegitimate assets.

In 2013, NAB had reopened two corruption cases against Shah under the directives of the Lahore High Court.

In July this year, NAB Chairman retired justice Javed Iqbal had approved nine inquiries against different personalities, including Shah.


Correction: An earlier version of this story reported that PPP leader Khursheed Shah's remand was extended by 14 days. That error is regretted.

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