Alleged to be involved in the Rs 1,400 crore housing scam the Pakistan’s opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif, younger brother of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, was arrested Friday and appeared before an investigation team of the National Accountability Bureau Lahore.
The 67-year-old is also Preside3nt of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N). The NAB officials detained him. His private staff was asked to leave. His car was sent away too.
Sharif will be presented before an accountability court on Saturday for a physical remand.
Meanwhile, supporters of his party started gathering outside the bureau’s office.
Shahbaz was former chief minister of Punjab province and his arrest comes at a time when the by-polls are scheduled to be held on October 14.
He is alleged to have an involvement in the corruption of Rs 14 billion Ashiana Housing project as well as Rs 4 billion Punjab Saaf Pani Company scams.
His son-in-law Ali Imran Yousuf, currently in United Kingdom after fleeing, is facing corruption charnges too in the case of Saaf Pani Company, which was established by Shahbaz’s previous Punjab government to provide safe water to rural areas.
In the Ashiana scam Sharif’s principal secretary Fawad Hasan Fawad and Shahbaz’s close confident Ahad Cheea are in custody.
His party said arrest of Shahbaz is unlawful as proper permission of the NA speaker was met as he is Leader of the Opposition.
PML-N spokesperson said, “We strongly condemn the arrest of the party president by the NAB. It appears to be a political victimization which should be stopped.”
