LAHORE: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his special adviser Ahad Cheema have filed pleas in an accountability court in Lahore seeking their acquittal in the Ashiyana-e-Iqbal Housing Scheme case.
Their move comes after massive amendments introduced recently by the Shehbaz Sharif-led government in the accountability laws of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
In February 2019, the accountability court formally indicted Shehbaz Sharif and others in the Ashiana-e-Iqbal scam case, while another reference was lodged elsewhere against the then National Assembly opposition leader and his son Hamza Shahbaz in the Ramzan Sugar Mills case.
The allegations against Shehbaz Sharif include misusing his authority and conniving with then Lahore Development Agency (LDA) director-general Ahad Khan Cheema to award the housing scheme contract to a favoured firm instead of the successful bidder. The opposition leader is also accused of bypassing the powers of the Punjab Land Development Company (PLDC) board of directors to transfer the project from PLDC to LDA.
Lawyer Amjad Pervez filed the acquittal pleas on behalf of Shehbaz Sharif and Ahad Cheema on Saturday. In their pleas, they stated that “no corruption was proved in the supplementary investigation report of NAB,” and added that “the NAB declared [us] innocent in the supplementary investigation report. There is no evidence against us.” They demanded their acquittal in the case.
