LAHORE: An accountability court on Tuesday extended the bail of former chief minister Usman Buzdar in an inquiry of illegal assets by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and allowed a last warning of withdrawing his pre-arrest bail.

Earlier, the counsel for Buzdar told the court that the former chief minister had been advised to rest by his doctors due to severe cardiac pain.

The court, however, expressed serious displeasure over the repeated nonappearances of Buzdar in his bail proceedings and refused to entertain his application for one-time exemption from personal appearance. The court directed his counsel to present his client within three hours or have the bail cancelled.

The counsel told the court that Buzdar was unable to travel due to health conditions and assured the court that he would appear at the next hearing. He also pointed out that a reply to the NAB questionnaire had been submitted by Buzdar.

Buzdar skipped two last hearings of his bail petition citing medical reasons. In his bail petition, Buzdar submitted that the NAB with mala fide intention and in connivance with the incumbent federal government had been politically victimizing him.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023