ISLAMABAD: Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Thursday, defending the massive increase in prices of all petroleum products said that former prime minister Imran Khan-led government has laid economic mines due to which the government is taking tough decisions in the best interest of the country.

Talking to reporters outside Accountability Court, he said that the government is taking tough decisions in the best interest of the country.

“Some difficult decisions have to be taken for the future”, he said, adding that we have to manage our income and expenses at a point.

To a question, he said that former premier Khan does not see his “inefficiency and incompetence” due to which he was ousted.

He further said that Khan was removed in a democratic way while former prime ministers Syed Raza Gillani and Nawaz Sharif were removed from their positions through unconstitutional methods.

“Khan does not know about the Constitution and the law”, he said.

He advised President Arif Alvi that it would be better to act as the President of Pakistan instead of running the affairs at the whim of an individual.

“He (Alvi) has been elected, therefore, it is necessary to follow the Parliament”, he said, adding that if the president does not sign the legislation including the Election Act Amendment Bill 2022, the National Accountability Ordinance Amendment Bill 2022 recently passed by the joint sitting of the Parliament, it will automatically become law on the 10th day.

Shah said that the recent amendment in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) law has been as per the advice of the high courts and the Supreme Court.

He said that the previous government booked political opponents in false cases. False cases have been made against opposition leaders just for political victimization.

“Who will be made accountable for making these cases of political victimization”, he asked. “It is a false case, which is a loss of time and money”, he said.

Shah said that there are 17 accused in the reference filed against him but there is no allegation of corruption against any government official.

Earlier, he and other accused appeared before the Accountability Court-III judge Syed Asghar Ali in an illegal award of contracts in the Sindh Nooriabad Power Companies (SPNC-I and SPNC-II) case.

Wasim Javed, prosecutor National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Hammad Kamal investigation officer (IO) NAB, and Arshad Tabraiz, counsel for the accused appeared before the court.

The defense counsels told the court that the Parliament has passed a new NAB Amendment Bill and forwarded it to the president for his assent and publishing in the gazette notification.

He requested the court to adjourn the case till the enforcement of the new law.

The court adjourned the hearing of the case till July 7.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022