The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday reserved its decision on a petition submitted by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Faryal Talpur seeking nullification of a call-up notice sent by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
In her petition, Talpur, the sister of former president Asif Ali Zardari, stated that she was summoned to appear before a combined investigation team of NAB Rawalpindi on April 17, 2019 in connection with the watchdog’s ongoing probe into the fake bank accounts scam.
Noting that she appeared before the NAB team and was handed a questionnaire, Talpur contended that the call-up notice was “malafide, illegal, without jurisdiction and [in violation] of fundamental rights of the petitioner as enshrined in the constitution of Pakistan”.
The PPP leader prayed the court that she was innocent and the call-up notice had been issued to her “under instructions from higher authorities with malafide intentions and ulterior motives to politically victimize her due to political rivalry and in order to humiliate, harass and dishonour her”.
She further asked the court to declare the said notice “malafide, illegal, without jurisdiction and null and void”.
The Federal Investigation Agency is investigating 32 people, including Zardari and Talpur, in relation to money laundering from fictitious accounts. Zardari’s close aide Hussain Lawai was arrested in July last year in connection with the probe.
The former president’s other close aide and Omni Group chairman Anwar Majeed and his son, Abdul Ghani, were arrested by FIA in August 2018.
Over 20 ‘benami’ accounts at some private banks were opened in 2013, 2014 and 2015 from where transactions worth billions of rupees were made, according to sources.
The amount, according to FIA sources, is said to be black money gathered from various kickbacks, commissions and bribes.
