Shehbaz's then secretaries among 46 to record testimonies in Ramzan Mills case

LAHORE:  At least 46 people, including then secretaries of former Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif would record their testimonies in Ramzan Sugar Mills case before an accountability court, ARY News reported.

According to a list acquired by the ARY News, former Punjab CM Shehbaz Sharif’s then Implementation Secretary Ahmed Javed Qazi, Imdadullah Bosal, then Secretary to CM Syed Tariq Shah and then Admin Secretary Tariq Masood would recorded their statements in the Ramzan Sugar Mills case.

While former DCO Chiniot Dr Irshad, Shoukat Ali, National Engineering Services Pakistan (NESPAK) Chief Engineer Muhammad Ayoob, Section Officer PHS Zulfiqar Ali, officer Namaat Ali will also record testimonies in the sugar mill case.

The accountability court likely to indict Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz in the sugar mill case on the next hearing.

It is pertinent to mention here that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had filed a reference against Shehbaz and his son – leaders of the opposition in the National and Punjab assemblies,  respectively – naming them as the primary accused in the scam.

NAB officials said Shehbaz, being chief minister of Punjab, misused his authority by issuing directives for the construction of a 10 kilometer long drain in Chiniot district primarily to benefit the sugar mills his son owned. Shehbaz and Hamza have been accused of fraudulently causing a Rs213 million loss to the national exchequer.

Read More: Court rejects plea to adjourn case against Shehbaz, Hamza

Earlier, the Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz had appeared before an accountability court on March 4, as it resumed hearing into the Ramzan Sugar Mills case.

As the hearing got underway, a lawyer informed the accountability judge that Shehbaz’s  counsel was busy in the Supreme Court and requested him to adjourn the case for now.

He further requested the court to provide a copy of the reference against the PML-N leaders on the next hearing and direct the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to submit original documents with regard to the case.