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A Rawalpindi accountability court on Saturday declared property tycoon Malik Riaz, former special assistants to the premier Mirza Shahzad Akbar and Zulfi Bukhari, and three others as proclaimed offenders in the reference filed in connection with the Al-Qadir Trust case.
The others named in the reference include Farhat Shahzadi, a close friend of PTI chief Imran Khan’s spouse, legal expert for the PTI government’s Assets Recovery Unit Ziaul Mustafa Nasim and Ahmed Riaz.
Accountability judge Mohammad Bashir resumed hearing into the corruption reference related to Al-Qadir University in Adiala jail. On a previous hearing on Dec 6, the court had issued a proclamation against the six for not joining the hearing of the £190 million corruption case.
The investigation officer recorded his statement regarding the suspects in today’s hearing.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had filed the reference against PTI chief Imran Khan and seven others, including his wife Bushra Bibi, in connection with the Al-Qadir Trust case.
The case alleges that Imran and Bushra Bibi obtained billions of rupees and land worth hundreds of kanals from Bahria Town Ltd for legalising Rs50 billion that was identified and returned to the country by the UK during the previous PTI government.
The reference filed by NAB alleged that Imran, who is currently in jail, played a “pivotal role in the illicit transfer of funds meant for the state of Pakistan into an account designated for the payment of land by Bahria Town, Karachi”. It also claimed that despite being given multiple opportunities to justify and provide information, the accused deliberately, with mala fide intention, refused to give information on one pretext or another.