KARACHI: An accountability court on Tuesday handed over former Sindh information minister Sharjeel Inam Memon and 11 other accused in a Rs 6 billion corruption reference to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on judicial remand till November 4.
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader had been taken into custody a day earlier after the Sindh High Court rejected his bail plea in the corruption case pertaining to the award of advertisements at ‘exorbitant rates’.
The court also issued notices to NAB on two applications filed by Memon, seeking B class and medical facilities in jail.
Out of the 11 co-accused, five had handed over themselves to NAB officials whereas the remaining seven had been arrested along with Memon. One accused in the case had been granted extension in his bail.
In a previous hearing of the case, NAB had said that it had investigated corruption and corrupt practices in the award of advertisements against the law and at exorbitant rates to TV channels and FM radio stations for various awareness campaigns between July 2013 and June 2015. It said it had found that the accused acted with the connivance of each other, resulting in losses to the national exchequer.
Some advertising companies, close to the minister, were given advertisements without inviting tenders which is a prerequisite. All official guidelines as well as the official per minute rates for both television (TV) and radio ads were ignored in the process.
Memon, by overstepping his boundaries, also approved a media plan proposed by advertising agencies without even investigating it first. Later, the former minister with the help of Information Secretary Zulfikar Ali Shalwani and other officials used back-dated documents to legalise the approval.
Memon is also facing a separate reference regarding illegal adjustment and consolidation of hundreds of acres of land in favour of a private housing project.
REJECTION OF BAIL:
Following the rejection of his bail plea on Monday, Memon had holed up for hours in the courtroom to avoid arrest as his team explored their options, but could not stave off the inevitable for long. During this period, in an apparent show of solidarity, several PPP ministers visited Memon in the court.
To avoid any ‘untoward incident’, a large number of law enforcement agencies personnel had beefed up the security around the court.
As soon as Memon had exited the building, surrounded in a tight cordon by his lawyers and supporters, he was nabbed by representatives of the accountability bureau and whisked away.