ISLAMABAD: The Accountability Court on Tuesday cancelled the non-bailable arrest warrant earlier issued by it for Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader and former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) case.

Accountability Court-II judge Nasir Javed Rana, while hearing the LNG case against Abbasi and others, issued the non-bailable arrest warrant for Abbasi and another accused Uzma Adil over their non-appearance before it.

Later, Abbasi’s counsel Barrister Zafarullah filed an application before the same court seeking the cancellation of arrest warrant. Abbasi’s lawyer adopted the stance in the application filed before the court that his client was coming to the court and he was on his way but he was late in reaching the court.

He further said that the court issued arrest warrants for his client upon reaching late to the court. The court while accepting Abbasi’s plea cancelled his non-bailable arrest warrant.

Earlier, at the start of the hearing of the LNG case regarding the award of the LNG terminal to the ETPL that allegedly caused a loss of Rs21.584 billion to the exchequer, the court issued non-bailable arrest warrant for Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and co-accused former chairperson of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) Uzma Adil Khan over his non-appearance as well as not filing an exemption application.

The NAB, on December 4, 2019, filed an LNG case before the Accountability Court.

The bureau on August 6, 2020, filed a supplementary reference against former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and others, in connection with the LNG case.

The bureau has nominated Abbasi, Abdul Khaqan Abbasi son of Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former finance minister Miftah Ismail, former MD PSO Sheikh Imranul Haque, Agha Jan Akhtar, former chairman PQA, and Saeed Ahmed Khan, former chairman Ogra, in the supplementary reference.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023