Illegal appointments: Ex-PM Shaukat Aziz's indictment deferred again

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Shaukat Aziz’s indictment in a case related to alleged illegal appointments was deferred again Wednesday.

The court was to frame charges against the former premier and other accused but the hearing was put off due to the accountability judge being on leave.

The court has now set Feb 1 for the indictment of the accused.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had filed a reference against Shaukat Aziz, who served as the prime minister from 2004 to 2007 – over alleged power abuse.

Also Read:  Non-bailable arrest warrants issued for former PM Shaukat Aziz

The bureau stated that he illegally appointed Basharat Hasan Bashir as a consultant for the Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) on Management Position-II (MP-II) pay scale in violation of the laws.

Bashir was appointed on January 1, 2006, NAB said. After the expiry of his consultancy contract in May 2008, he illegally continued to hold the post for almost five years without any extension, notification or regular appointment and kept on enjoying a hefty salary and others perks and privileges in connivance with the management of AEDB.