ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court on Wednesday adjourned hearing of four bail petitions of JUI-F leader Akram Khan Durrani till January 15, ARY News reported.
“The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has to convince the court under the new accountability law over the matter”, Chief Justice Athar Minallah remarked during the hearing.
The chief justice in his remarks said, “The public office holders are not principal accounting officers, which are bureaucrats”.
“The new ordinance has shielded all bureaucrats who hold the authority,” the chief justice said.
“These all cases are about misuse of the authority,” Justice Athar Minallah said.
“Recommendation to a person, who holds authority, over a matter is not misuse of authority. Those who were holding the authority have been given shield under the new NAB ordinance,” the justice remarked.
The NAB has to convince the court over the matter when a person holding authority has been protected in the new law,” the bench told NAB prosecutor Jahanzeb Bharwana.
“The new law has raised several questions”, the bench said.
“It is hard to understand for the court, a person who doesn’t hold authority, why he be held responsible (for a decision) and arrested,” the chief justice questioned.
NAB prosecutor told the court that Akram Durrani made illegal recruitment despite not holding authority to do so.
He said that it was the first case after the new ordinance came into force. He sought time for further arguments over the matter.
The bench granted time to the NAB to convince the court over the matter.
The court adjourned the hearing of bail petitions until January 15.
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