ISLAMABAD: An accountability court in Islamabad on Tuesday granted interim bail to former President Asif Ali Zardari before his arrest till November 23 in a US assets case.
Accountability Judge Azam Khan accepted Zardari’s interim bail on a surety of Rs 5 lakh.
According to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutors, Mr. Zardari allegedly owned an apartment in the Belair condominium, located at 524 East 72nd Street in New York.
NAB issued a call-up notice to the former president on June 15, asking him to appear before the NAB team on June 24 in connection with an investigation into his ownership of an apartment in New York.
Mr Zardari, through his lawyer Farooq Naik, argued in the bail plea that the call-up notice was issued at the behest of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government. He termed the call-up notice “baseless” and an attempt to defame him.
The petition rejected NAB’s claim that Mr Zardari was the owner of the New York property and said the notice was issued to harass him and damage his reputation.
After the court proceedings, the former President spoke to media persons. He said those who brought Imran Khan to power are now repenting and looking for ways to improve.
Zardari said he was not sure that Khan would be able to complete his five-year term.
In response to a question regarding Affidavit Former Chief Justice of Gilgit-Baltistan Rana Shamim Ahmed Khan claimed that in July 2018, the then Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar asked a judge of the Islamabad High Court to stop the release of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and other members of the Sharif family. asked for , said. After the 2018 general elections, Mr Zardari replied that he had witnessed similar conversations with Saifur Rahman, the former head of the Ehtasab Commission, and retired judge Malik Qayyum, a ‘friend’.
Published in Dawn, November 17, 2021