ISLAMABAD – The National Accountability Bureau has approached the SupremeCourt seeking custody of Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, the son-in-law offormer prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

The anti-graft watchdog has moved an appeal to the top court challengingthe Islamabad High Court (IHC)’s decision wherein it had maintained theaccountability court’s order pertaining to the release of Capt (retd)Safdar on bail following his arrest in October last year.

On 19 February, an IHC divisional bench comprising Justice Aamer Farooq andJustice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani had dismissed the NAB’s plea seeking to setaside the accountability court order.

The NAB appeal said that the accountability court could not release theaccused, Capt (retd) Safdar, who is arrested in execution of the arrestwarrants issued by the court.

“The accountability court cannot release an arrested accused, when it hasno powers to grant bail to any accused as provided by section 9(b) of NAO,1999,” it said.

It further contended that “the accountability court wrongly extendedbenefit to the accused by misapplying the law and remained failed to make adistinction between a complaint case and a challan case”.