An accountability court in Islamabad on Friday granted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) an 11-day extension in the physical remand of former President Asif Ali Zardari ina fake accounts case.
On June 10, a 15-member NAB team, accompanied by police personnel, had arrested Zardari from his residence in Islamabad after the cancellation of his pre-arrest bail by the Islamabad High Court in the case, reports Dawn news.
Following the decision to extend Zardari’s remand till July 2, a NAB team left the court with the former President.
A day after his arrest on June 10, accountability court judge Mohammad Arshad Malik had granted NAB physical remand of the former leader and ordered that Zardari be presented before the court again on June 21.
The NAB team had presented Zardari before Judge Malik on Friday. During the proceedings, NAB requested a 14-day extension in his physical remand.
A report of the investigation conducted was presented in court and NAB Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Khan Abbasi also submitted a report of Zardari’s medical check-up.
Judge Malik said that the prosecutor wanted to share what they had uncovered so far, to which Zardari’s counsel Latif Khosa responded: “They haven’t found out anything, they are just making up stories because this entire case is based upon assumptions.”
Zardari, the widower of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and his accomplices are accused of laundering 4.3 billion Pakistani rupees (around $28 million) through 29 bank accounts bearing the names of third parties, reports Geo News.
The former leader has denied the allegations and claimed that the probe was politically motivated and instigated by the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party led by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Zardari, who was President from 2008 till 2013, was earlier imprisoned on separate corruption charges in the 1990s and early 2000s.
He has spent nearly 11 years in prison in connection with different cases.