PESHAWAR, Jan 30: An accountability court on Wednesday convicted a former senior member of the Board of Revenue, Abdul Hamid Khan, and sentenced him to 10-year rigorous imprisonment with a Rs45.45 million fine and forfeiture of his assets.

The court presided over by Miftauddin Khan observed: “The accused has failed to rebut the documentary prosecution evidence and has also failed to furnish reasonable account and explanation for accumulation of illegal assets in his name and in the names of his dependents/benamidars. Therefore, by taking presumption of guilt against the accused under section 14 of the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance, I hold that all the assets in the name of accused and his dependents/benamidars are outcome of corruption and corrupt practices as defined under section 9(v) of the NAB Ordinance.”

The imprisonment awarded to Mr Khan is the highest announced by any of the four accountability courts since their establishment here in 1999.

The court allowed the convict benefit of section 382(B), so his detention period beginning before the conviction would be counted in the 10-year term.

Special prosecutor Saeed Akber Afridi appeared for NAB, whereas Ibadur Rehman Lodhi represented the defence. Mr Khan told newsmen that he would file an appeal before the high court and described the verdict as “flawed on various counts”. He said his service record was a proof of his innocence.