Former President Asif Ali Zardari was granted interim bail till Nov. 23 by an accountability court on Tuesday in New York Property case.
AC-II Judge Muhammad Azam Khan heard the pre-arrest bail petition of the former President who appeared before the court along with his legal team.
Farook H Naek pleaded that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had granted interim bail to his client and now they have approached the trial court following the amendments in the NAB ordinance. He said, “The ordinance empowers accountability courts to hear the interim bail cases”.
After listening to the arguments, the court approved an interim bail to Asif Zardari till November 23 and sought comments from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the plea.
The NAB had accused the former president of owning a flat in New York City which he had not disclosed in his nomination papers submitted to the ECP. Previously, the IHC bench had granted protective bail to Asif Zardari and ordered him to approach the trial court for further relief.
During his appearance at the Islamabad Accountability Court on Tuesday, where he was due for a hearing, journalists briefly spoke to the former President.
Talking to the media, former President and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Asif Ali Zardari said that those who brought Imran Khan to power are now admitting that they made a mistake.
Responding to a query about the government, Zardari forecasted that “Imran Khan’s government will not complete its term,” adding that “now Allah knows best how to fix this mistake.”
A journalist questioned Asif Zardari on his opinion regarding the news of a former judge submitting an affidavit that former chief justice Saqib Nisar had asked him to reject bail applications of Maryam Nawaz and Nawaz Sharif.
He responded that Maryam Nawaz is like his daughter and he refuses to comment on her petition. He continued saying, “we have already seen this. In the past, Justice Qayyum had a tape [phone calls] with Saifur Rehman and some friends.”
