NAB asked to conclude arguments in Qasim Zia case

LAHORE
A division bench of the Lahore High Court on Thursday asked the counsel for National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to conclude his arguments on September 17 about bail petition of PPP’s senior leader Qasim Zia facing charges of fraud.
Earlier, the bureau’s counsel told the bench that the prime suspect of the scam, Ali Usman had been arrested. He said the suspect told the interrogators that Qasim Zia was equally involved in the fraud. The counsel said the suspect also revealed that the politician used to withdraw money from the company’s account for his election campaign. He said Qasim Zia had already submitted an application for voluntarily return; therefore, the bail petition should be dismissed. The bench asked the NAB counsel to come up on next hearing with his final arguments along with relevant record. Qasim Zia through his counsel stated in the petition that he had left the company “Ali Usman Brokerage” seven years before it committed the alleged fraud. The counsel said the NAB officials kept his client in custody for 16 days but failed to establish his involvement in the scam. He said the case was a result of mere political victimisation.