LHC denies long adjournment in Kh Asif case

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday denied a long adjournment to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the post-arrest bail petition of former defence minister Khwaja Asif in an inquiry of assets beyond means and directed its prosecutor to come up with final arguments on June 21. Earlier, the prosecutor told a two-judge bench that a reference against the former minister has been sent to the NAB chairman for final approval. He requested the bench to allow a two-week time to submit documents and a reply to the bail petition.

Justice Aalia Neelum, who headed the bench, asked the prosecutor as to how a bail matter could be postponed for a long time. Asif’s counsel said the petitioner was on judicial remand since January 27, 2021. The judge asked the prosecutor as to what the NAB has been doing for the last six months. The judge fixed June 21 for the next hearing and observed that the court cannot be run on the whims of the NAB.

The NAB has alleged that Asif failed to explain the sources of his income and assets. It said the suspect was first elected senator in 1991 when his assets were around Rs 5 million. It said the assets of the suspect swelled to Rs 221 million by 2018, which were beyond known sources of his income. The NAB had arrested him from Islamabad on December 29, 2020 and shifted him to Lahore where he remained on physical remand till January 22, 2021. The former minister is a sitting MNA from NA-73, Sialkot.