NAB disrespecting PM by pursuing helicopter use case, says Fawad

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD: Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday said that the helicopter use case being investigated by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) is an insult to the prime minister.

Chaudhry said while this speaking in Geo News show Capital Talk, in response to allegations against PM of using former Khyber Pakhtunkhawa government’s official helicopters. On January 29 this year, Geo News reported that the former KP government spent millions on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s use of the provincial government’s helicopters. A go-ahead for the probe was given in February by NAB chairman.

Rubbishing the merits of the case, Fawad said charges were never formalised by NAB in the case. “I think these are excesses by NAB, this is NAB insulting the PM and the system…,” he added.

“What is this case about? The KP government sent a helicopter to Imran, in which he travelled to inaugurate projects,” he said, adding that making a case out of it has turned it into a laughing matter.

“We are not laughing, the world is laughing [at this],” he said.

NAB chairman Justice (retired) Javed Iqbal in February directed the bureau to launch a probe against the PTI chief and then-KP chief minister Pervez Khattak over the unofficial use of two government helicopters by misusing authority.

Khattak has already appeared before NAB in the past regarding the case.

PM is accused of illegally using an Mi-17 and an Ecureuil helicopter belonging to the KP government for a total of 74 hours, causing a loss of Rs2.1 million to the national exchequer.