LAHORE: The PML-N says Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) former chief Bashir Memon has disclosed that the agency instituted a fake case against opposition leader in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif.

“Bashir Memon has exposed the government on the fake case against Shehbaz Sharif,” PML-N Punjab information secretary Azma Bokhari said in a statement on Wednesday. She said the FIA was being used for political engineering but this effort (against Shehbaz) would fail like that of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

“The Imran Khan government wants escape from the foreign funding case that is why it is targeting Shehbaz Sharif,” Ms Bokhari said and lamented that in federal cabinet and the PTI core committee meetings Prime Minister Imran Khan and others discussed Nawaz and Shehbaz instead of the people’s problems.

“The man who is told about dollar appreciation is not capable of running a nuclear power,” she said.

On Tuesday, a sessions court granted pre-arrest bail to Mr Memon in three inquiries and restrained the agency from arresting him till Jan 31. The FIA initiated three inquiries against its former head on charges of money laundering, fraud and aiding a suspect wanted in a financial crime case.

His counsel argued before the court that all the inquiries initiated against his client were “baseless and politically motivated”.

SUSPECT: The FIA arrested a suspect allegedly involved in illegal hawala and hundi business.

According to the FIA, a team raided Chenab toll plaza in Wazirabad and arrested Salman Khokhar and seized foreign currency from him. He was involved in the illegal business of hundi and hawala.

Published in Dawn, January 13th, 2022