LAHORE, Oct 3: The ‘mysterious’ disappearance of former Ogra chief Tauqir Sadiq has brought the Punjab government and the Governor’s House on the verge of a clash following the former’s allegation that he is hiding in the latter.

The Supreme Court ordered the National Accountability Bureau on Tuesday to immediately arrest Mr Sadiq. It also remarked that the Punjab police chief (Haji Habibur Rehman) should be arrested if he had given shelter to the accused. The NAB’s Deputy Prosecutor General, Fauzi Kazmi, told the court that Mr Sadiq might be somewhere in Lahore under the protection of Punjab police.

As NAB is still looking for Mr Sadiq, a relative of PPP secretary general Senator Jehangir Badr, the Punjab government came up with a claim: “We have reports that Mr Sadiq is hiding in Governor’s House,” Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah alleged. “We request Governor Sardar Latif Khosa to hand him over to police. Otherwise, they can raid Governor’s House and register a case against Mr Khosa for giving shelter to an accused,” he said.

Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who is in London, asked the inspector general of police to “take effective steps for the arrest of the accused and not to succumb to any pressure or hindrance in this regard”.

Governor Khosa took exception to the charge, alleging the PML-N was known for “harbouring criminals,” but now its minister was throwing mud at him. “As Punjab police are already deployed at Governor’s House, there is no question of a raid by the same force,” as spokesman for Mr Khosa said.

“The law minister’s allegation is reflective of his sick mentality and lack of political training,” he said.

An official at Governor’s House said that since the Supreme Court had named the IG, the provincial government had decided to shift the focus to Governor’s House.

“Why the Punjab government is getting active in this case with which it has nothing to do? The court has asked NAB, which is investigating this matter, to lay hands on the IG if he is a hurdle in the arrest,” he said, adding that the Punjab government should inform the court if it had any proof of Mr Sadiq’s presence in the Punjab Governor’s House.

On the other hand, IG Habibur Rehman said he had not received any order from the Punjab government to arrest Mr Sadiq. “We are not investigating this case,” he told a TV channel.

Mr Sadiq went into hiding after the Supreme Court, in November last year, declared his appointment as chairman of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) illegal and ordered NAB to investigate corruption cases against him.