The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday, while hearing a contempt petition against not holding a probe into allegations of kickbacks in selling embassy land in Japan and Indonesia in 2002, directed a deputy attorney general to ensure a reply from the NAB authorities by July 5th, if not, then a NAB representative must appear before the court on the next date. Justice Umar Ata Bandial passed the order on a petition filed by Dr Qaisar against the National Accountability Bureau authorities seeking contempt proceedings on failure to act on court orders in the embassy land case.
The petitioner submitted that a single bench of the LHC, had ordered the NAB in April 2011, to hold a probe into allegations of kickbacks received in selling embassy land in Japan and Indonesia in 2002, on a petition filed by him. He submitted that the court also ordered filing a reference to the accountability court.
However, the NAB authorities failed to act on the court’s orders despite being approached by the petitioner.
The petitioner pleaded the court to initiate contempt proceedings against the NAB.
It is pertinent to mention here that a LHC single bench, while disposing of a petition filed by Dr Qaisar, ordered a probe into the sale of embassy land in Japan and Indonesia.
The petitioner had challenged the sale of high cost embassy land in the countries allegedly on the ‘directions’ of General Pervez Musharraf who had allegedly ‘shared’ the kickbacks with the then ambassadors in the sale deal.
