SC dismisses NAB appeal against acquittal of former DG IB

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) appeal against acquittal of Former Director General (DG) Intelligence Bureau (IB) Brigadier (retd)  Imtiaz in assets beyond income case.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa  and comprising Justice Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice Yahya Afridi, heard the NAB petition against the acquittal of brig (retd) Imtiaz.

During the course of proceedings, the chief justice remarked that determining the assets  beyond the limits was the duty of the anti-corruption body but it did not determine the total  value of assets in the case.

The NAB prosecutor argued that it was duty of the accused to clarify their assets, on  which, the Chief Justice remarked that the same issue was lingering in the courts until  2011, in all the cases presented by the NAB while the SC in its verdict had clarified that  it was duty of the anti-graft body to prove the assets beyond the limits.

The anti-graft body’s lawyer contended that the accused wife, Nasreen Imtiaz was a  benamidar, on which the Chief Justice remarked that proving the assets beyond limits was  the first and base of the case before proving the benamidar and if the first base was missing,  then being the benamidar was not a crime.

He asked that who Adnan Khawaja was and what he did?

The counsel of Adnan Khawaja while responding to the CJ query told that his client  was a businessman who also owned a factory.

The NAB prosecutor said that Adnan Khawaja was a benamidar of Brigadier (retd)  Imtiaz and he (Adnan Khawaja) brought a shop from an amount provided by the former  DG IB.

Brigadier Imtiaz’s counsel said that the case was based on a mala fide intention.

The Chief Justice remarked that if the properties were made on an illegal source  of income, then the prosecution must prove it.

The SC retained the High Court verdict regarding the acquittal of Brigadier (retd)  Imtiaz, his wife, Nasreen Imtiaz, and Adnan K Khawaja.