ISLAMABAD: The executive board of the National Accountability Bureau discussed on Thursday whether to file a reference against Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on the Rs22 billion rental power projects (RPPs) scam.

According to sources, the meeting presided over by NAB Chairman Admiral (retd) Fasih Bokhari lasted five hours but could not take a decision. The Supreme Court had ordered NAB on Jan 11 to arrest those involved in the scam. But the bureau is yet to fix criminal liability on any of the accused.

NAB spokesman Zafar Iqbal confirmed that the meeting had taken up the issue but the discussion had been inconclusive. “Any outcome will certainly be shared with the media.”

NAB considers Raja Ashraf as one of the main accused in the case and had requested the interior ministry twice to put his name on the Exist Control List (ECL), but the request was ignored.

“If the prime minister is really involved in the case nothing can be hidden in the present age,” the spokesman said.

The sources said some new developments in the investigation might have compelled the investigators to record a fresh statement of the prime minister. According the NAB Ordinance, only incumbent president and governors are exempted from the bureau’s action.

Nine RPPs firms had received over Rs22bn as mobilisation advance from the government but most of them did not set up their plants and a few installed them after an inordinate delay. NAB has so far recovered Rs5bn in addition to Rs8bn paid by the RPPs on directives of the Supreme Court.