Islamabad High Court Seeks Reasons From NAB For Ahsan Iqbal's Arrest

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Thursday directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to apprise it of solid reasons on next date of hearing regarding the arrest of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Ahsan Iqbal in the Narowal Sport Complex corruption case

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Feb, 2020 ) :The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Thursday directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to apprise it of solid reasons on next date of hearing regarding the arrest of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Ahsan Iqbal in the Narowal Sport Complex corruption case.

An IHC bench comprising Chief Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Lubna Saleem Pervaiz heard the bail petition filed by Ahsan Iqbal against his arrest by NAB in the corruption case.

At the outset, the chief justice remarked that arresting someone without any solid proof was a violation of basic human rights. The court would issue a detailed judgment regarding the powers of NAB chairman for issuance of arrest warrants, he added.

The petitioner's counsel Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri claimed that there was no allegation of financial misappropriation, bribe, benami property or having assets beyond known sources of income against Ahsan Iqbal. NAB had accused him only of misusing of powers during the tenure of PML-N government, he added.

The chief justice questioned as to why NAB had arrested Ahsan iqbal if he was cooperating with it in investigations. Arresting someone without any solid proof was violation of his basic human rights as an accused was innocent in the eyes of law until he was proved as guilty, he added.

NAB's Additional Prosecutor General Jahanzeb Bharwana pleaded that the NAB chairman had the authority to issue arrest warrants of the accused. The Narowal Sport Complex was a provincial project but funds were issued by the Federal Government for it, he added.

He said the accused was taken into custody by NAB in order to avoid record tempering or influencing witnesses by him and stop him from fleeing abroad.

CJ Athar Minallah asked as to how the accused could temper the record. Whether he was still holding the ministry's record. The accused's name could be placed on Exit Control List (ECL) to stop him from fleeing abroad.

Later, the court adjourned the case for a week directing NAB containing to provide solid reasons for the arrest of Ahsan Iqbal.