Accountability court issues non-bailable arrest warrants for Ishaq Dar

ISLAMABAD: An accountability court on Tuesday issued non-bailable arrest warrants of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar during trial proceedings in the reference filed against him for allegedly having assets beyond his known sources of income.

Accountability Judge Muhammad Bashir issued non-bailable arrest warrants of the Finance Minister over his perpetual absence from the court proceedings.

Ishaq Dar did not appear before the court today despite issuance of bailable warrants against him. He is undergoing treatment in London for heart complications.

The hearing was adjourned till Nov 21.

At the previous hearing, the accountability court had directed Dar’s guarantors to appear in person and ensure his presence in the court on Nov 14.

Advocate Khawaja Haris had filed an application on behalf of his client seeking exemption from appearance before the court and submitted that his client cannot personally attend the proceedings as he is undergoing medical treatment abroad.

A medical report was also submitted to the court.

However, NAB prosecutor Imran Shafeeq contended that the finance minister was deliberately skipping the proceedings and making lame excuses. The prosecutor then asked the court to issue ‘non-bailable’ arrest warrant for Dar.

The accountability court judge after hearing arguments from both sides rejected both pleas filed by the respondent and prosecution while directing Dar’s counsel to ensure his presence on next hearing on Nov 14. The judge had also directed the investigation officer to confirm the authenticity of the medical report.