ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif’s appointment as Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman was challenged in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Saturday.
According to the petitioner, Shehbaz’s appointment at the post is illegal and a reference should be prepared owing to violation of National Accountability Ordinance’s (NAO) Section 31.
The petitioner further argued that the issuance of production orders for Shehbaz were also against accountability laws, adding that Section 16 (B) of NAB ordinance should be used to take action against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president.
“Chief secretary Punjab should be instructed to arrest Shehbaz and submit him to relevant authorities,” the petition argued, while adding that he should not be appointed at the post due to conflict of interest.
National Assembly speaker, Shehbaz Sharif, Ministry of Law and Prime Minister Imran Khan’s secretary have been named respondents in the case.
The PML-N president is also facing corruption charges by the anti-graft body.
On Friday, Shehbaz Sharif summoned record of all cases referred by the apex body to NAB and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in the past years, giving the investigative agencies till Tuesday to submit replies in the cases pending probes.
On December 13, the government had reluctantly agreed to let Shehbaz chair the PAC — a longstanding demand by opposition parties in the NA.
Also on Friday, the Lahore High Court (LHC) was moved against the appointment of Shehbaz at the post.
In his petition, petitioner Advocate Azhar Siddiqui has named the federal government and the National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser as respondents.
Siddiqui has argued that Shehbaz should not be allowed to head the committee as he is facing corruption allegations. He has requested LHC to nullify his appointment.