PM Imran mulls inducting Babar Awan into cabinet

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan is mulling over inducting Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Babar Awan, who was recently exonerated by an accountability court from corruption charges, into his cabinet, ARY News reported on Saturday.

Sources relayed Babar Awan will likely be made the prime minister’s Adviser on Parliamentary Affairs.

It is noteworthy that he had previously served as the premier’s adviser on parliamentary affairs until Sep 5, last year when he resigned after the filing of the Nandipur power plant reference against him.

“Fulfilling Imran Khan’s promise to the nation, I tender my resignation from the office of prime minister’s adviser on parliamentary affairs,” Mr Awan had stated in his resignation.

“I stand down from my office so that I could prove wrong NAB’s allegations hurled at me,” he added.

Earlier, on June 25, an accountability court in Islamabad had acquitted Babar Awan in the Nandipur power project reference.

However, it dismissed acquittal pleas of PPP leader and former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and other accused in the case filed by National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Accountability Judge Muhammad Arshad Malik announced this verdict on applications filed by five suspects seeking their acquittal under section 256-K of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) for want of evidence.