Joint opposition protest against Shehbaz’s arrest soon: Sanaullah

LAHORE: Reacting to the arrest of former chief minister Punjab Shehbaz Sharif, senior PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah claims that the government is using National Accountability Bureau (NAB) as its political tool.

Talking to media here, he said the government was using NAB as its weapon against the rivals. “NAB has already produced interim challan in the case, but PML-N leader has been arrested despite submission of the challan.”

We would, he said, stage a protest in collaboration with the whole Opposition.

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He went on to say that the government was not just biased, but also resorting to “worst political victimization” against its opponents.

Earlier on the day, an accountability court granted 10-day physical remand of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif in the Rs14 billion Ashiyana-i-Iqbal housing project scam.

NAB presented the PML-N leader before the court in an armored vehicle amid tight security.

As Shehbaz reached the court, dozens of charged PML-N workers besieged his vehicle with some getting on it and chanting slogans in favour of their leader.

The Bureau a day earlier arrested the PML-N president, who is the Leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, inside its Lahore office where he was summoned to record his statement in connection with the Punjab Saaf Pani Company case.

The Bureau later issued a statement, declaring that former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif has been arrested in the related to Ashiana Housing scheme.

According to NAB, “the contract for the housing scheme was won by a construction company titled Chaudhry Latif and Sons but former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif and his aides awarded the Rs 14 billion contract to Lahore Casa Developers – a proxy group of Paragon City (Pvt) Limited, which is said to be owned by Railways Minister Saad Rafique”.