NAB summons Nawaz Sharif on March 20

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has been summoned by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to appear before it in a case pertaining to the alleged allotment of a land to the Editor-in-Chief Jang Geo Media Group Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman.

NAB claims that Nawaz — when he was the Punjab chief minister — allotted a 54-kanal plot of land in 1986 to MSR. The former prime minister has been summoned by the anti-graft watchdog at 11:00AM on March 20, 2020.

It is pertinent to mention here that Nawaz is in London where he is undergoing treatment for various illnesses. MSR was arrested by NAB a few days ago when he appeared before the Lahore office of the bureau in relation to the private property case.

The property in question, in fact, had been bought from a private party, and all the evidence, including legal requirements like duty and taxes, to this effect, were provided to the anti-graft body.

MSR had gone on Thursday on a call-up notice for verification of the complaint, but the arrest was made.

Responding to matter the Jang Group spokesperson had denied the allegation.

He said: “In the past 18 months, the NAB sent our reporters, producers and editors, directly and indirectly, over a dozen notices, threatening shutdown of our channels (via PEMRA) due to the Jang/Geo Group’s reporting and its programmes about the NAB. In its defence, the NAB has in writing said that it is a constitutionally-protected institution that can’t be criticized.”