Ishaq Dar corruption case: Panama JIT's Wajid Zia directed to appear on Feb 8

ISLAMABAD: The accountability court hearing the assets reference case against former finance minister Senator Ishaq Dar continued its proceedings on Wednesday.

Dar, a close aide of Pakistan Muslim League-N chief Nawaz Sharif, is accused of possessing assets disproportionate to his declared sources of income. A reference against him was filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in light of the Supreme Court's July 28 verdict in the Panama Papers case.

As the hearing went under way, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Joint Registrar Sidra Mansur submitted in court documents related to two of Dar's companies. 

Moreover, SECP Deputy Registrar Salman Saeed also submitted details of Dar's companies. 

Earlier, Saeed had requested Accountability Court-I Judge Mohammad Bashir for some time to present the records, saying the documents were on their way from Karachi. The court then briefly adjourned the hearing. 

'Court computer on UPS'

Later, NAB requested for more time as Saeed's records were delayed, to which the judge responded that the prosecution better hurry up as owing to the electricity load-shedding, the court computer is running on a UPS and the battery may die soon. 

Wajid Zia no-show 

Former head of the Panama case Joint Investigation Team, Federal Investigation Agency Additional Director Wajid Zia, did not appear in court today despite being directed to by the NAB. 

He was summoned by the NAB as a prosecution witness. 

During today's hearing, the NAB pleaded the judge to issue a formal summons to Zia, to which the judge responded that he is the prosecution witness and should thus appear in court.

The judge observed that he will issue a summons if Zia fails to appear at the next hearing. 

The case was then adjourned until February 8, when the court expects to record the statements of Zia and NAB investigation officer Nadir Abbas.

The two are the last witnesses mentioned by the prosecution. 

At the last hearing on Tuesday, the court recorded Mansur's statement, who also presented details of several of Dar's companies registered with the SECP.

At an earlier hearing on Monday, the court had recorded statements of six witnesses: NAB officials Shakeel Anjum, Iqbal Hasan, Zavar Manzoor and Umar Draz Gondal, District Officer Punjab Industries Azhar Hussain and IRS Lahore Commissioner Ishtiaq Ahmed.

Ahmed had informed the court that Dar's wealth increased 91 times from Rs9.1 million in June 1993 to over Rs830 million by 2009.

Following his indictment, Dar has been a no-show in the proceedings after he departed for London in October last year seeking medical treatment.