LHC Grants Bail To EOBI Scam Accused

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Oct, 2016 ) : The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday granted bail to Zafar Gondal, former chairman of Employees Old-Age benefits Institution (EOBI), in six cases.

The court ordered the accused to submit sureties of Rs 12 million to avail the bail. Justice Sardar Shamim Ahmad Khan had reserved the verdict on bail applications of Zafar Gondal after hearing the arguments of the parties and it was announced Friday in open court.

Earlier, the petitioner's counsel submitted that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had registered different cases against the accused in land purchase and illegal appointments scams. He said that investigations had been completed in the cases and challans (Charge-Sheets) also submitted to the trial court.

He pleaded the court to grant bail to the accused in the cases as he was no longer required for further investigation whereas co-accused had already been granted bail in the cases. The FIA's counsel opposed the request and submitted that the accused was found guilty during the investigation.

He requested the court to dismiss the applications. It is pertinent to mention here that the LHC earlier granted bail to the accused in the cases but the Apex Court ordered the LHC to reheard the cases while remanding applications for bail cancellation of the accused. The accused was also involved in two more cases and he had to secure bail in the cases yet.