Nooriabad power plant reference: Court to indict Sindh CM on 30th

ISLAMABAD: An Accountability Court has set June 30 to indict Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in the Nooriabad power plant reference.

Accountability Court Judge Asghar Ali conducted the hearing of fake accounts, Nooriabad power plant and the money laundering reference on Tuesday. However, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah could not appear in the court on Tuesday.

The court accepted the chief minister’s application for exemption from appearance. The NAB prosecutor told the court that co-accused Muhammad Ali is a fugitive and is out of the country. The court, in reaction, declared Muhammad Ali an absconder and issued his warrants.

Judge Asghar Ali ordered to put Muhammad Ali’s name on the Exit Control List (ECL) and block his national identity card. The judge adjourned the hearing until June 30, directed all the accused to appear before the court on the next hearing.

The Nooriabad power plant reference alleged that Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah issued funds for power projects in Sindh in violation of rules and that billions of rupees were embezzled in the Nooriabad Power Company and the Sindh Transmission and Dispatch Company projects.

The Nooriabad Power Project was originally envisaged by the Sindh government in 2012 but could not materialise then due to “red-tapism and delays in regulatory approvals”. The project was finally launched in August 2014 under a public-private partnership at a cost of Rs13 billion. The Sindh government held 49 percent of its shares while a private company owned 51 percent.

A 95-km-long 132kV double-circuit transmission line was laid from Nooriabad to Karachi at the cost of Rs1.95 billion. Murad was adviser to the Sindh chief minister on finance and energy at that time. The NAB alleged that the procedure caused a loss of $16 million to the national exchequer.