Eden scam: NAB to consider plea bargain of ex-CJP’s son-in-law

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has received a plea bargain appeal from the former chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry’s son-in-law, Murtaza Amjad, who was arrested in Dubai last week in connection with the Eden Housing Society scam, media reports said Thursday.

The reports said that Interpol has issued red notices of four accused – Muhammad Amjad, Murtaza Amjad and Anjum Amjad.

The accused have applied for a Rs 13 billion plea bargain with the NAB. The bureau is expected to discuss the plea bargain in their forthcoming executive board meeting, reports added.

If the plea bargain is admitted, the former CJP’s son-in-law will be released, it was said.

Last week, the affectees of the Eden Housing Society had held a demonstration outside the Lahore residence of Prime Minister Khan, urging him to help them recover their hard-earned money allegedly looted by the group that launched the housing scheme.

The protesters demanded that the PTI government bring Eden Housing group owner Dr Amjad and others back from Canada and recover the looted money from them or ensure the group completed the project and handed them over the houses and plots promised to them.

There are at least 10,000 affectees of the group. Dr Amjad and his two sons had managed to flee the country in April last and travel to Canada as the interior ministry did not put their names on the Exit Control List despite a request by NAB.

The bureau has estimated the property seized from the Eden group to be worth up to Rs20b, claiming that it would compensate the affectees soon.

In June, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had written a letter to NAB Chairman retired Justice Javed Iqbal, asking him to launch an investigation against ex-CJP Chaudhry and his family for allegedly receiving benefits in the scam of the failed Eden Housing Society.