NAB approaches SHC to seek plea bargain in Adam Jokhio case

KARACHI: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) authorities on Wednesday approached the Sindh High Court (SHC) against an accountability court decision of refusing plea bargain in the land defrauding case of an accused Adam Jokhio, ARY NEWS reported.

The NAB authorities took the plea in the court that the accused was ready for a plea bargain with the accountability watchdog but the court had rejected the offer.

The top court of the province after listening to initial remarks of the NAB prosecutor adjourned the proceedings.

In another plea, the counsel of Adam Jokhio requested the court for granting bail to the accused on medical grounds. “Adam Jokhio is ill and admitted to a hospital,” he said.

To this, the chief justice asked as to why he is worried if his client was admitted to a hospital and rejected the bail plea. The court, however, approved a plea for forming a medical board to ascertain health issues faced by the accused and adjourned the hearing till February 27.

It is pertinent to mention here that on 11 December 2019, an accountability court rejected a petition of the NAB for acquittal of Adam Jokhio, who is accused of defrauding the general public.

The anti-graft watchdog in its plea in the court while seeking acquittal of the accused had said that Jokhio has made a plea bargain and agreed to hand over plots to aggrieved allottees.

Around 200 people had submitted affidavits in court, who were defrauded by Jokhio in 1992 by taking payments to booking plots in residential projects. But he did not hand over the allotted plots.

Read More: NAB raids Adam Jokhio’s house and office, finds details of 32 bank accounts 

The court extended the judicial remand of Jokhio till December 24.

The court had earlier refused to immediately approve the plea bargain petition submitted by NAB and remarked that Jokhio should give the allotted land to the victims before it issued its decision on the plea bargain petition.

The accountability bureau officials had conducted raids in November at Haji Adam Jokhio’s house and office in Karachi.

The NAB had claimed that the accused was involved in cheating public at large by defrauding around 1100 allottees plots.