ISLAMABAD: An accountability court on Thursday granted a one-day exemption to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman, Asif Ali Zardari, in Toshakhana reference as the lead counsel for the accused was not available for cross-examination of witnesses brought by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the case.
Judge Syed Asghar Ali of Accountability Court-III resumed the hearing of Toshakhana reference against Zardari and former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.
NAB prosecutor, Waseem Javed, and Barrister Shiraz, the counsel for Zardari, appeared before the court.
The court approved the exemption plea of Zardari from the court appearance and adjourned the hearing till March 14.
The cross-examination of NAB witness Shakeel Anwar was delayed during the proceeding owing to the absence of Farooq Naek, the lead counsel for Zardari.
In September 2020, the court had indicted the PPP co-chairman, a former president along with former prime minister Gilani in the case.
Zardari is accused of illegally keeping expensive vehicles gifted by various heads of states and other foreign dignitaries instead of depositing them in Toshakhana.
In November 2021, the former president filed a fresh plea in the accountability court of Islamabad seeking his acquittal in the Toshakhana (gift depository) reference under the new NAB law.
This is the second time the PPP co-chairman has filed an acquittal plea in the case. He moved the fresh application through his lawyer Sheeraz Rajpar on the basis of the recent amendments made to the country’s accountability law.
He challenged the jurisdiction of the NAB court to hear the reference.
Zardari states in his plea that he is being subjected to political victimisation. The national graft buster instituted bogus and baseless cases against him, he added.
Meanwhile, in another case, Judge Azam Khan Accountability Court-II, Islamabad resumed the hearing of the NAB reference vs Iftikhar Rahim, ex-secretary WWF and others regarding misappropriation in Workers Welfare Fund (WWF) causing a loss of Rs466.2 million to the national kitty. Due to illness of Prosecutor Usman Masood, the case was adjourned till March10.
In another case, Judge Azam Khan of Accountability Court-II resumed the hearing of the NAB reference against Shahid Khan, former secretary and ex-chairman NPF and others, regarding illegal allotment of plot in the NPF.
Due to illness of prosecutor Usman Masood, the court re-listed the case for March 24.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022