LAHORE: An accountability court on Tuesday summoned prosecution witnesses in the Paragon City reference of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against Federal Minister for Aviation Khwaja Saad Rafiq, his brother Khwaja Salman Rafiq and others.

Earlier, a counsel filed an application on behalf of the minister for a one-time exemption from personal appearance. He told the court the minister was on an official visit to China with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

However, Salman and other accused persons appeared before the court.

Presiding Judge Qamaruz Zaman allowed the application of Saad Rafiq and adjourned the hearing till Nov 17. He extended the interim pre-arrest bail of Farhan Ali and Nadeem Zia, one of the owners of the Paragon City.

The NAB had accused the Khwaja brothers of wrongfully gaining Rs18.2 million approximately from M/s Paragon City (pvt) Limited in their bank accounts. It said the brothers, through their “benamidars”.

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2022