Parvez Elahi Indicted in Accountability Court for Alleged Bribery and Kickbacks
Parvez Elahi Indicted in Accountability Court for Alleged Bribery and Kickbacks
Lahore: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has filed a corruption reference against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) President Parvez Elahi before an accountability court in Lahore.With the court summoning witnesses for the next hearing, Parvez, the former Punjab chief minister, has disputed the charges against him.The senior lawmaker, along with his son Moonis Elahi and others, is accused of fraudulently authorizing different development programs, accepting kickbacks, and inflicting more than Rs1 billion in losses to the national exchequer.
In its reference, the NAB also accused the PTI leader and his son of accepting bribes by awarding contracts to their “favorite contractors.” It claimed that the father-son duo received more than Rs1 billion in kickbacks through intermediaries in more than 200 development projects in the Gujrat district during Parvez’s second term as Punjab chief minister.It also stated that the former chief minister embezzled more than Rs744.5 million in bribes and kickbacks. The reference further noted that the accountant continued to put kickbacks in Moonis and his family’s accounts.
His son placed €1.61 million in his international bank account, and his family members deposited more than Rs304 million in theirs.The reference indicated that because the suspects were proven guilty during the inquiry, the accountability court should hold a trial and sentence them appropriately.Furthermore, the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Punjab’s lawsuit accuses Parvez of making illegal appointments and receiving bribes to influence the recruitment process while serving as chief minister.
According to the ACE, good candidates were passed over in favor of unqualified applicants who had not even taken the relevant exams.The latest indictment adds to the PTI leadership’s months-long legal difficulties since founder Imran Khan, senior leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi, and others have been in jail for months in other instances.The development comes amid ongoing negotiations between the former ruling party and the government and the pending verdict in Khan’s £190 million case, which has been held in Adiala jail for more than a year.Although the party has yet to provide a written charter of demands in negotiations with the government, it has repeatedly asked for the release of the PTI founders and workers.
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