PHC restrains NAB from arresting PML-N’s Muqam without warrants

F.P. Report

PESHAWAR: National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has been stopped by the Peshawar High Court (PHC) from arresting Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) leader Amir Muqam without the issuance of warrants for arrest, on Wednesday.

According to reports, a bench of PHC, however, allowed the NAB to continue with its investigation against Amir Muqam and directed it to furnish comments on his petition on the next hearing.

The bench ruled, NAB would have to issue warrants for the arrest of the Amir Muqam ten days before his arrest if it need his custody.

The PML-N leader’s lawyer stated before the court that the bureau had been carrying out investigation against his client for allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to his sources of income. “NAB summons people for inquiry and arrests them,” he added.

He pleaded with the bench to bar NAB from arresting Amir Muqam without the issuance of arrest warrants.

Earlier, on Jan 10, the PHC had restrained NAB from arresting former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law Capt (retd) Safdar without arrest warrants.

The restraining order came on a petition filed by Safdar who approached the high court fearing his arrest by the corruption watchdog in a case pertaining to accumulation of assets beyond known sources of income.

The petitioner’s counsel contended before the court that NAB could arrest his client in an inquiry being carried out against him. “NAB summons in one case but arrests in another case,” he said in reference to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif’s arrest inside the NAB Lahore office in the Ashiana Iqbal housing case as he was summoned for questioning in another graft case.