QUETTA, Jan 5: Accountability Court Judge Mohammad Naeem Kakar has convicted seven former officials of the provincial education department in various corruption references.

The judgment was announced on Wednesday in references filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against eight officials, including three former-directors for illegal appointments and malpractice that caused the national exchequer losses of about Rs11 million. The court convicted the accused when prosecution proved charges.

Two former directors - Raja Nasir Ahmed and Naseem Kausar - were sentenced to five and two years of jail and fined Rs1.5 million and Rs400,000, respectively; former deputy director Musa Jamali got one-year imprisonment and fine of Rs50,000; ex-accountant Abdur Rashid was awarded five-year imprisonment and fine of Rs1.5 million; ex-superintendent Javed Shamim got one-year imprisonment and fine of Rs200,000; ex-district education officer Mohammad Ibrahim was awarded one-year imprisonment and fine of Rs1.3 million; and former cashier Abdul Qadir was awarded seven-and-a-half-year jail and fine of Rs3.8 million.

Former education director Mohammad Hashim Kakar was acquitted for lack of evidence against him.