ISLAMABAD, Nov 3: The Rawalpindi Bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday suspended dismissal of a senior official of the National Accountability Bureau and sought para-wise comments from the bureau authorities.

In a petition submitted to the court, NAB senior prosecutor Brig (retired) Abdul Baseer Qureshi has made the bureau’s chairman, vice chairman and assistant director respondents.

The petitioner’s counsels, Mian Abdur Rauf Advocate and Sardar Asmatullah Khan Advocate, informed the court that NAB had established Special Operation Division for which Mr Qureshi was appointed senior prosecutor on a six-month contract on March 28, 2006. On September 14, 2006, his contract was extended for another six months till April 2007.

In the meantime, NAB Deputy Chairman Hassan Waseem Afzal shifted his office from the main headquarters in Islamabad to Lahore because his wife also worked there in some government department, the petition stated, adding that Mr Afzal also asked Mr Qureshi to shift his office to Lahore.

However, the senior prosecutor refused to shift to Lahore and resigned from his post. The deputy chairman insisted on him taking the resignation back, allegedly offering that would be accommodated if he cooperated with a former ARY Gold Reference convict Aslam Hayat Qureshi.

The senior prosecutor refused to accept the offer. Angered by this, the vice chairman directed assistant director NAB Kaleemuddin Qureshi to cancel his contract instead of accepting his resignation.

Mian Abdur Rauf Advocate contended that the action was based on mala fide intentions. An assistant director is not authorised to cancel contract of a senior prosecutor as only bureau chairman has the power to do so, he further argued. All this was done without issuing a show-cause notice.

There is no illegality or adverse remarks against him. Baseer Qureshi was a public servant and his appointment was through a proper agreement, the counsel contended.