Former judge Asghar Haider appointed NAB prosecutor

ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Wednesday notified the appointment of retired judge Syed Asghar Haider as new prosecutor general of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court wrapped up the suo motu hearing regarding the appointment of the NAB prosecutor after the attorney general assured that the appointment will be made in two days.

Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf told the three-member bench that Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has recommended the appointment of retired judge Syed Asghar Haider for the slot out of a list of eight names.

He assured that the summary had been sent to the president and a notification to this effect was expected within two days.

The post of the prosecutor general has been vacant since November, when the three-year tenure of former PG Waqas Qadeer Dar ended.

Haider was among the nominees recommended by the NAB chairman for appointment to the post of PG.

Earlier, the bureau chairman had sent a list of five retired judges to the government to pick from. He proposed the names of Mudassir Khalid Abbasi, Shah Khawar, Syed Asghar Haider, Fasih-ul-Mulk and Nasir Saeed Sheikh.

However, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi rejected the recommended names and proposed instead three names to select from.

The federal government wanted to appoint a man of its choosing at a time when several high-profile corruption cases including those involving the family of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif were pending for disposal.