Punjab ministers appear before NAB in sugar scandal

ISLAMABAD: Punjab ministers Mian Aslam Iqbal and Mohsin Leghari on Tuesday appeared before the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Rawalpindi in a probe regarding the sugar scandal, ARY NEWS reported.

Minister for Irrigation Mohsin Khan Leghari was the first one to reach the accountability bureau’s Rawalpindi office, where he appeared before the joint investigation team probing the sugar scandal.

Minister for Industries and Commerce Mian Aslam Iqbal also appeared before the NAB investigation team. The minister tried to drove his car inside the NAB office premises, however, he was asked to go on foot.

The ministers have been asked to appear before the committee along with the sugar subsidy record from 2018 to 2019 and a record regarding export permission has also been sought.

Furthermore, the record of subsidies provided to the sugar mills in Punjab have also been sought by the NAB’s team, sources said.

Sugar inquiry report 

It is pertinent to mention here that the federal government had made public reports of a high-level inquiry into the sugar and wheat crises that had hit the people hard across the country in January 2020.

Under the stewardship of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) director general Wajid Zia, two teams had carried out a probe into the crises and furnished their reports to the prime minister upon completion for perusal. Prime Minister Khan had gone through the report before it was made public.

Prime Minister Imran Khan had also vowed legal action against those responsible for the sugar and wheat price hike after the detailed forensic reports.