Court issues bailable arrest warrants for Dar after he fails to turn up at graft hearing

ISLAMABAD: The accountability court hearing a corruption reference against Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday issued bailable warrants of arrest after he failed to appear in court.

Dar had been summoned to appear in court in connection with a reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for possessing assets beyond his declared sources of income. The reference had been ordered by the Supreme Court in its July 28 judgement in the Panama Papers case.

As the hearing began in Judge Mohammad Bashir’s court, Dar’s protocol officer Fazal Dad appeared in court and informed the judge that the minister is presently in London.

The NAB prosecutor pleaded the court to issue arrest warrants to ensure Dar’s presence in court. Following this, the court went into a recess to decide on the bureau’s plea and returned with the directions of ordering bailable arrest warrants for the finance minister.

The court ordered for submission of bail bond of Rs1 million and adjourned the hearing until September 25, ordering Dar to be present in court at the next hearing.

NAB sources said that summons for Dar was sent to his residence in Islamabad and his personal address in Lahore.

NAB officials also informed the court that the minister’s summons was received by his driver, whereas his staff officer informed authorities that the minister’s seat on the flight back was confirmed but he could not make it due to some commitments.

Later on Wednesday, NAB authorities sent the arrest warrants for Dar to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for pasting them outside the minister’s residence in London.

Dar’s accounts to be frozen

Moreover, NAB Lahore on Wednesday directed the State Bank of Pakistan and all banks of the country to freeze Dar’s accounts.

In its letter, the anti-graft watchdog also instructed the banks to inform it immediately after taking the said action.

On Tuesday, the same court, while hearing corruption cases against the Sharif family, issued a second summons for the accused after they failed to appear in court.