A special court (central-I) approved unfreezing bank accounts of eight companies controlled by Suleman Shehbaz, a son of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and a proclaimed criminal in a Rs 16 billion money laundering case lodged by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), to pay their employees’ salaries.
During the hearing, defense attorney Amjad Parvez said Suleman’s employees hadn’t been paid in over a year because the FIA seized their bank accounts.
PO Suleman was merely a shareholder and not the company’s owner, hence the accounts had nothing to do with him.
Abid Rasool Awan, the firm’s secretary, requested the unfreezing of the accounts. Since the FIA blocked the bank accounts, thousands of employees at Chiniot Mines and Ramzan Sugar Mills have not been paid.
The judge ordered the institutions to unfreeze the accounts in question.
The judge granted PM Shehbaz and his son, Hamza Shehbaz, one-time exemptions from personal appearance.
The attorney told the court that the PM was on an official trip while Hamza requested a medical exemption.
The court deferred hearings until Sept. 30 to hear arguments on Shehbaz and Hamza’s acquittal applications.
Shehbaz and Hamza’s pre-arrest bail had previously been confirmed.
Shehbaz and his sons Hamza and Suleman were booked in November 2020 under sections 419, 420, 468, 471, 34, and 109 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 3/4 of the Anti-Money Laundering Act. Shehbaz and Hamza were granted interim bail the day before their FIA appearance, June 21, 2021.
Mahnur is MS(development Studies)Student at NUST University, completed BS Hons in Eng Literature. Content Writer, Policy analyst, Climate Change specialist, Teacher, HR Recruiter.
