Reference against Shehbaz, Fawad to be filed soon, NAB tells court

LAHORE: An accountability court was assured on Friday that a reference against opposition leader in National Assembly, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, and senior bureaucrat Fawad Hassan Fawad, would be filed soon in Ashiana-e-Iqbal Housing scam.

A National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor made the statement before Accountability Court Judge Syed Najamul Hassan, who was hearing the case.

The prosecutor submitted that the reference had been prepared and it would be filed within two or three days.

The prosecutor made the submissions after the defence counsel mentioned that the bureau had not filed any reference against the accused yet.

After prosecutor's assurance, the court extended judicial remand of Fawad Hassan Fawad, former director general Lahore Development Authority, Ahad Cheema, Shahid Shafiq Faridi, Imtiaz Haider, Bilal Qidwai and others, who were produced in the court on Friday on expiry of the judicial remand. The court ordered for producing them again on January 3.

The court was apprised that Shehbaz Sharif could not be produced as he was in Islamabad to attend the National Assembly session.

It is pertinent to mention here that the NAB had already filed a reference against Cheema and five others over their alleged role in Ashiana-e-Iqbal Housing scam.

The contract for the housing scheme was won by a construction company titled Chaudhry Latif and Sons, but former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif and his aides allegedly awarded the Rs 14 billion contract to Lahore Casa Developers, which was ineligible for the purpose.

Due to alleged illegal cancellation of the contract, the government had to pay damages to the contractor. The cancellation of the contract also delayed the project, resulting in cost escalation in billions of rupees.