IHC extends bail of former Sindh CM Qaim Ali Shah till April 30

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has extended interim bail of former Sindh chief minister Qaim Ali Shah till April 30, ARY News reported on Monday.

A divisional bench comprising Justice Amir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani held hearing over the petition seeking interim bail in Thatta and Dadu sugar mills cases.

Qaim Ali Shah along with his counsel Farooq H. Naek appeared in the hearing.

Justice Amir Farooq, on a lighter note, asked Shah’s lawyer, “Why you have appeared today, we just want to summon a reply.”

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) sought more time to submit response.

Later, the hearing was adjourned till April 30.

Earlier, the senior leader of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Qaim Ali Shah had been granted bail by the IHC against surety bonds of Rs1 million each in the cases, and directed him to cooperate with the NAB investigation team.

According to the NAB, Shah was accused of failing to protect assets of the Sindh government as a chief minister. The loss was inflicted upon the provincial government by selling the sugar mills for peanuts.

The accountability watchdog notice said the sale of Dadu Sugar Mills had imparted illegal profit to Naudero Sugar Mills.

Shah said that he had been politically active since 1960 when he was elected chairman of the Khairpur district council and then successfully contested the general elections.

The former chief minister was also named in a report by the joint investigation team tasked to probe the fake accounts case involving PPP chairman Asif Ali Zaradi and others. Shah was among 172 people named in the report whose names were to be placed on the no-fly list.

Asif Ali Zardari, his sister Faryal Talpur and other accused, including PPP leaders and several businessmen, are facing an inquiry into the money laundering scam involving over Rs35 billion money laundered through fake bank accounts.