Matter of my bail a worst part of history of Pakistan’s judiciary: Fawad Hassan Fawad

ISLAMABAD, Feb 07 (SABAH): Former prime minister’s Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s principal secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad has revealed that National Accountability Bureau (NAB) arrested him on charges of corruption in Ashiana-e-Iqbal Housing Scheme scam and pressurized him to give statement that ‘all this happened on the directions of chief minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif which was unjustified.’

Expressing his views at a private TV channel, Fawad Hassan Fawad further disclosed the NAB asked him if he gives this statement he will be free of all the charges of corruption leveled against him and furthered witness of this fact was former attorney general of Pakistan Ashtar Ausaf Ali who was particularly called from Islamabad and asked to advised him [Fawad] to covey him all this otherwise he would have to remain in jail for 20 years.

He further revealed, ‘the watchdog body asked me if I give this statement I will not be produced before the court and all the charges will be discharged. News of your arrest was running but we have not confirmed it. When I didn’t accept it then they started teasing me.”  

“Matter of my bail is the worst part of history of Pakistan’s judiciary. During 10 months, my appeal was listened to only two times. Application of my bail remained on the table of Chief Justice of Pakistan for 10 months but it was not placed before any bench for the sake of hearing. My lawyer four times requested for early hearing but it was rejected at the chamber instead of placing it before any bench for hearing,” he further revealed.

The former principal secretary said when suggestion of appointing Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal as NAB chairman came, he opined before former prime ministers Nawaz Sharif and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to not appoint him on this position as his conduct did not suit to it, and further told them that he knew well about his conduct.

He said his seniors told him ‘whenever no-one will standby you, the courts will do or when any senior will snatch your rights or you will dent to other interests the way of courts is open. But this route was closed during 2017 to 2019 and it was the worst period.”

Fawad said that he remained in physical remand for 89 days and total remained in NAB custody and in jail for 19 months, adding that he was acquitted from the case after four years and 10 months. Fawad said that the NAB filed reference against him after 14 months of his arrest, adding that it was alleged that he was the owner of the Rs 14 billion plaza but fact is that he was even not included in the owners of the plaza. Fawad Hassan Fawad said when the NAB filed reference against him it was said that Rs 3.5 billion are legitimate and he could not provide the proof of Rs 1.08 billion.

   Fawad Hassan Fawad said that till date NAB did not inform that we established the plaza while securing loan from three banks and now we are facing Rs 1 billion loss only in form of interest rate of banks, adding that who is responsible for this loss, whether state of Pakistan will pay this loss, NAB will pay this loss or the courts will pay this loss where the case continued without any justification.