Zardari denies owning offshore properties, accounts

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Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday informed the Supreme Court (SC) that he does not own any properties or bank accounts abroad.

The former president claimed this in an affidavit submitted in the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) case. Hearing of the case will take place on Wednesday.

The affidavit, submitted through his counsel Farooq H Naek, also stated that Zardari stands by whatever he has written in the already recorded statement.

In April, an SC bench issued notices to former presidents General (r) Pervez Musharraf and Zardari, former attorney general Malik Mohammad Qayyum and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) over a petition filed against the NRO.

The petition was filed by Feroze Shah Gillani wherein he submitted that the country had suffered a loss of billions of rupees due to the ordinance and requested the court to take action to recover the stolen amount.

Subsequently, the top court gave one month to the respondents to submit a reply.

The NRO is a controversial ordinance which was issued by Musharraf granting amnesty to politicians in cases registered between January 1, 1986, and October 12, 1999. However, the ordinance was declared unconstitutional by the top court on December 16, 2009.