SHC grants interim bail to Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in illegal appointment case

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday granted interim bail to former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz stalwart, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and former secretary petroleum Arshad Mirza in an illegal appointment case, ARY News reported.

Abbasi and Mirza had filed plea in the SHC, seeking interim bail in the illegal appointment after the NAB court Karachi summoned both on June 9.

Khaqan in his plea stated that reference filed against him is baseless and he wants to appear before the NAB court, but fears arrests.

The former prime minister appealed the SHC to grant him bail before arrest so that he can appear before the court to fight the reference against him.

Later, the court granted interim bail to both the accused in the reference and directed them to submit surety bonds of Rs0.5mn each.

The anti-graft watchdog had filed reference against PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the illegal appoint of Imran-ul-Haq as PSO managing director in a Karachi accountability court.

NAB in December last year filed a reference in the accountability court against Mr Abbasi, Mr Ismail, former managing director of the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) Sheikh Imranul Haq, former chairman of Ogra Saeed Ahmed Khan, Ogra chairperson Uzma Adil Khan, Engro group chairman Hussain Dawood, former chairman of the Port Qasim Authority (PQA) Agha Jan Akhtar, former member of Ogra Aamir Naseem, another former managing director of PSO Shahid M. Islam and PSO official Abdul Sammad.