Bilawal Says He Will Not Appear Before NAB

Fida Hussnain (@fidahassanain) Published December 23, 2019 | 05:56 PM

Farooq H. Naek submitted written reply before the anti-graft body on behalf of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari

KARACHI: (Urdu Point/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-Dec 23r, 2019) Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that he would not appear before the National Accountability Bureau JV Opal 225 –a company which was allegedly used for fake accounts.

According the sources in the NAB, Bilawal had submitted written replies to the anti-graft body in fake accounts case and categorically said that he would not appear before it. Farooq H. Naek—the counsel of Bilawal Bhutto—submitted written replies on his behalf before the NAB officials in Rawalpindi.

“Bilawal would not appear before the NAB,” said Naek here on Monday. Bilawal was summoned by the anti-graft body for Tuesday , Dec 24^th, 2019.

A day earlier, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that yes he would be summoned as Musharraf was not happy. He strongly criticized the PTI government for its failure to deliver to the general public since the day first it came into power.

There are total 24 accused in fake account case including former President Asif Ali Zardari and Faryal Talpur who are now on bail. According to the NAB sources, JV Opal 225—is a joint venture company between Zardari group Pvt. Ltd and Bilawal is one of its director. They said that JV Opal was established in 2011 2011 and had its office on a property in Karachi owned by the Zardari Group. From 2011 to 2013, the company did not generate any revenue, yet it purchased major assets, agriculture lands, commercial and residential properties in Islamabad and Karachi, states the JIT report.

The only amount it received, during this period, was of Rs1.2 billion from its business partner, the real-estate firm, which, according to the JIT report, was not due to the Zardari Group.

The investigators suspect that this payment was made by the real-estate company as a bribe or kickback for getting favors from the Sindh government in the form of illegal allotment of state land.