Fawad Chaudhry terms NAB cases false, politically motivated

ISLAMABAD: Former federal minister for information Fawad Chaudhry has said that the allegations against him are politically motivated and the NAB cases have no grounds.

Fawad Chaudhry has been facing charges pertaining to misappropriation in construction projects including Lillah-Jhelum road in Jhelum. The National Accountability Burea (NAB) prosecutor claimed that the former minister adopted an illegal way to award contract to a contractor. He has sent his point of view to The News from jail via his brother Advocate Faisal Fareed. In his written statement, Fawad said he has been alleged that he used his political influence for the construction of Lillah-Jhelum road. “It is beyond my understanding that if I cannot work for the development of my constituency or propose a development project for my region then why I should contest the elections. The project has been stopped for the last one and a half years just because of me,” said Fawad Chaudhry.

“The total cost of the project was Rs16 billion. Of which Rs8 billion were already spent but they stopped the project without any reason. Now the total cost of the project has been escalated to Rs24 billion. Apart from cost escalation, hundreds of thousands of people in the region are suffering because of this incomplete project,” commented the former minister for information and broadcasting.

“I will not be the only person who will use this road. Hundreds of thousands of people will commute through this road. In addition to this road project, they have also stopped construction work on a trauma center in Toba. Almost 55 percent of the construction work was completed,” he said. “Are the only big cities entitled to development? Are the people of Jhelum not from Punjab or Pakistan? What is happening in politics, everyone knows about it and I don’t want to comment on it,” he said.