KARACHI, May 26: The Sindh High Court admitted an accountability accused to bail in the sum of Rs 500,000 on Friday. Nawaz Ali Samejo, former chief engineer of the Water and Power Development Authority posted at Guddu Barrage, has been charged with purchasing an oil vacuum purifier at an exorbitant rate.

According to the National Accountability Bureau reference being tried by an accountability court, the purifier should not have cost more than Rs 700,000 but the ex-chief engineer awarded the supply contract for Rs 10 million, thereby causing wrongful loss to the public exchequer.

The accused moved a writ petition to secure bail and his counsel, Mohammad Ashraf Kazi and Jan Mohammad Khuhro submitted before a division bench, comprising Justices Zia Pervez and Rahmat Hussain Jafferi, that the reference was misconceived. The prosecution was relying on a customs invoice showing the purifier’s price as Rs 700,000.

The counsel said the accused scrupulously followed the Wapda procedure for procurement of machinery and invited tenders for the supply of the oil purifier and awarded contract to the lowest bidder.

There was no irregularity or misuse of power involved. The prices of purifier of the specification required by Wapda could still be checked.