NAB laws being amended for rulers' personal gains: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi asserted that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) laws were amended to save the top leadership of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), ARY News reported on Sunday.

In a statement, Shah Mahmood Qureshi termed the incumbent government an unnatural arrangement, saying that the destination of parties in the coalition regime is different and it will not last long.

The PTI vice-chairman further said that the NAB laws were amended for personal gains to save the top leadership of PPP and PML-N, requesting the Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan to take suo motu notice of NAB amendments.

He pointed out that the federal government has taken powers from the NAB chairman to arrest anyone, while the power of the president has been taken back and given to the federal government, adding that such amendments are for a special purpose.

Shah Mehmood added that the incumbent government also reversed the PTI’s decisions to give the right to vote to overseas Pakistanis. He termed the overseas Pakistani the biggest asset to Pakistan’s economy, stressing that the country was running on their remittance.

Qureshi also condemned the violence against party workers and women during PTI’s Azadi March, saying that the police used tear gas on families. “There is no precedent for violence against lawyers in all of them,” he added.

On May 26, the National Assembly approved amendments to the National Accountability Ordinance 1999 in a bid to curtail the powers of the National Accountability Bureau.

The bill was tabled by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar who said that multiple amendments were made in the accountability Ordinance to clip the powers exercised by the accountability bureau.

Sharing details of the key amendments, he said that after fresh amendments, no arrests could be made before completion of the investigation process, and the suspect will have the right to obtain bail while 90-day remand is also abolished.

“90-day remand is for terrorists and we have now reduced the duration of remand to 14 days,” he said and added that no defamation campaign could be carried out unless the suspect is convicted in the case. The case could not be used for political purposes in the assets beyond means case, he added.