Shrine land allotment case: ACE grills Nawaz in jail

LAHORE: An Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) team interrogated former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the Kot Lakhpat Jail on Tuesday in the Pakpattan shrine land illegal allotment case.

According to the case, Nawaz, as the chief minister Punjab at that time, had allegedly allotted a property attached to the shrine of Baba Fariduddin Ganj Shakar in Pakpattan, illegally.

The ACE team grilled Nawaz Sharif for about half an hour and placed old record and official documents in front of him in a jail room.

According to sources, Nawaz replied: “Documents are 34 years old. I do not remember anything.” The ACE team asked him, “You have been nominated by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) in this case, what is your opinion?” The former premier said it was an old case and he had no knowledge of it. On his request, the ACE team provided him all the documents related to the case on the occasion.

The team asked the former premier if he gave an advertisement in any newspaper for the land allotment. Nawaz replied that it was the responsibility of the department concerned and not his responsibility to advertise the land allotment.

The JIT told Nawaz Sharif that he, as the Punjab chief minister, had withdrawn a notification, and allotted the land of the Auqaf Department to one Dewan Ghulam Qutab in 1986, illegally. “You directed secretary to the chief minister, Javed Iqbal Bukhari, to issue a new notification within 12 hours. Why did you do it in such a hurry?” asked the investigation team.

Nawaz replied that issuance of a notification was the responsibility of the secretary. “I will not answer the questions right now and submit my replies after talking to my legal counsel,” Nawaz said. “On what grounds the land was allotted and which officers issued the orders for the allotment?” asked the investigators, adding: “On what basis the land was allotted to Dewan Qutab?”

According to sources, the former premier again said he did not remember anything as the case was decades old. However, all legal requirements were completed, he added. “I had fulfilled all legal requirements, but I do not remember the details. I had worked within the parameters of the law and the Constitution and never misused my authority. I have always served the country,” Nawaz added.

“I would further respond over the matter after consulting my legal team,” he said. The anti-corruption team handed over a questionnaire to Nawaz Sharif and left the jail room. Meanwhile, a team of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lahore raided the offices of Hamza Shahbaz and Suleman, sons of PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif, to collect evidence in an ongoing investigation against the Shahbaz Sharif family related to assets beyond means and money-laundering.

The News learnt on authority that a NAB Lahore team, led by Assistant Director Usman Iftikhar, raided two offices of the Shahbaz family; one at 134-C, Link 4, Street 2, Cavalry Ground, and the other at 61-C-1, Gulberg-III. Sources said the case investigation officer had sought permission from the DG NAB Lahore for raiding the offices of the Shahbaz family to collect evidence. The NAB team seized all record of the offices including the digital record, computer hard drives and laptops, etc.

Suleman Shahbaz has been declared as an absconder in the Ramazan Sugar Mills case, and he is living in London along with his cousins. On June 17, 2019, one Mushtaq alias Cheeni and his son Yasir Mushtaq, alleged front men of the Shahbaz family, in their confessional statements before the court, had confessed that they facilitated Suleman Shahbaz to whiten his Rs600 million black money through fake loan agreements and engineered telegraphic transfers (TTs).

Separately, it has been learnt that NAB Lahore had launched a money-laundering probe against former finance minister Ishaq Dar.

NAB sources said the bureau had found concrete evidence against Dar about his alleged involvement in money laundering. Also, added the sources, the bureau had seized Rs500 million from different accounts of Ishaq Dar, which had been transferred to the provincial government.

Meanwhile, Ishaq Dar’s bungalow, seized by NAB in Lahore, would be auctioned and the bureau was likely to fetch around Rs150 million as its price.

On the other hand, NAB is investigating Maryam Nawaz, daughter of Nawaz Sharif, over charges of money-laundering for the purchase of Chaudhry Sugar Mills. She, and her brothers, Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz, have been summoned by NAB investigators for Wednesday, July 31 (today). The bureau had directed Maryam and her brothers to appear in person before the combined investigation team of NAB Lahore.

NAB had directed Maryam to provide details of shares in Chaudhry Sugar Mills and the number of total shareholders. She had been asked to provide the amount of sugar exported so far and the mode of receiving payments and details of bank accounts through which payments were received. Hassan and Hussain have already been declared absconders in the Avenfield case and both are living in London. Maryam was convicted in the Avenfield case.

INP adds: NAB Rawalpindi has recovered Rs2.12 billion in the fake accounts case against former president Asif Ali Zardari. According to sources on Tuesday, NAB Chairman Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal has accepted plea bargain request of Asif Mehmood and Arif in the Nooriabad Power Company and Sindh transmission funds corruption cases.

The anti-graft agency said the final petition for plea bargain would be submitted in the accountability court. The suspects, along with Sindh officials, were involved in corruption through fake auctions, NAB said. Sources said NAB had already arrested 25 suspects in the fake bank accounts case. In the last hearing in an accountability court, physical remand of three accused, who had applied for plea bargain in fake bank accounts case, was extended till July 31. During the hearing, the judge had directed for winding up the case against them as soon as possible.