ISLAMABAD: The names of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former finance minister Miftah Ismail and five others have been placed in exit control list in an inquiry into the LNG scandal, ARY News reported on Friday.
Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal had earlier approved an inquiry against Shahid Khaqan, Miftah Ismail and others for their alleged role in the LNG scandal.
Chairperson Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA)Uzma Adil Khan, former MD Pakistan State Oil (PSO) Imranul Haq, Mubeen Saulat, Shahid Islamuddin and Amir Naseem have been other officials placed in the ECL, sources said.
Earlier, these names were being kept in the ‘stop list’, sources said.
Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan on Thursday appeared before NAB in connection to the inquiry of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) contract.
NAB is probing a case filed against Abbasi in 2015 for allegedly awarding a LNG import contract at exorbitant rates, which caused big loss to the national exchequer.
It accused Abbasi of misusing his authority during his stint as petroleum minister. The case was registered on a complaint by Shahid Sattar – an energy expert and former member of the Planning Commission and the SSGC board of directors – on July 29, 2015.
According to the bureau, the contract for the LNG import and distribution was awarded to the Elengy Terminal in 2013 in violation of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules and relevant laws.
