ISLAMABAD – An Islamabad accountability court on Wednesday approved two-daytransit remand for PML-N leader Khawaja Asif, ordering the anti-graftwatchdog to immediately present him before the relevant court in Lahore.
Khawaja, former defence minister, was arrested on Tuesday on four charges,including owning more assets than his reported income can justify,providing false sources of income and accumulating undue assets while inpublic office.
“In view of the distance between Islamabad and Lahore, transit remand isgranted subject to medical fitness as such as the Investigating Officer(IO) is directed to produce the accused before concerned accountability onor before December 31 [Thursday],” Judge Muhammad Bashir ruled whilehearing the case.
According to National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Asif hid his illegallygained assets by transferring them to other people’s names. In 1991 he hadassets worth Rs5.1 million but in 2018 they were worth Rs221 million.
Before the 2018 general election, the Islamabad High Court had disqualifiedAsif for holding a foreign iqama (work permit) but the Supreme Court hadoverturned the order and allowed him to contest the election. He waselected an MNA from NA-73 Sialkot.
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Talking to the media outside the Islamabad court, Khawaja Asif said thatthere have been many attempts to break the PML-N and weaken its supremoNawaz Sharif over the last two and a half years.
The PML-N lawmaker said he was “100% sure” that Prime Minister Imran Khanwas behind his arrest.
