Sindh court considers referring Yellow Line case to NAB — Dawn
The Sindh High Court in Karachi, Pakistan, has indicated the possibility of referring to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) a case concerning alleged corruption worth 8.5 billion Pakistani rupees during the construction of the Yellow Line bus rapid transit route. Dawn reports.
Investigation delay
A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Saleem Jessar expressed dissatisfaction that the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) has still not submitted the investigation materials to the court. The court also ordered ACE chairman Zulfiqar Ali Shah to provide an explanation for the delay.
The judges noted that a criminal case was registered after the completion of a preliminary inquiry. However, despite the passage of considerable time, an investigation report has not been submitted to the competent court under Article 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Under the law, an investigation must be completed within 14 days, the bench stressed.
In the court's view, such an unexplained delay may indicate serious negligence. The bench asked whether the investigation was being deliberately delayed to provide an improper advantage to the suspects or harm the prosecution's case.
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Possible referral to NAB
A provincial government representative, who submitted an explanation on behalf of the ACE chairman, asked for the petition to be dismissed as premature and for the investigation to be allowed to complete its work. At the same time, he was unable to convincingly explain why the investigation had not been completed and the report had not been filed.
The court asked ACE and other parties to explain why the case should not be referred to NAB for consideration and further examination within its legal powers. The court noted that the case concerns a major Karachi infrastructure project — the Karachi Mobility Project for the BRT Yellow Line system, being implemented with the participation of the World Bank.
Case circumstances
Zameer Abbasi, who was the director of the Karachi Mobility Project at the time of the events, filed a petition seeking to quash the criminal case against him. ACE arrested Abbasi, a Grade 19 Sindh government official, and other individuals following an inquiry into possible financial irregularities in the Yellow Line project.
Earlier, the Sindh High Court granted Abbasi bail after his arrest, stating that investigators had performed their work improperly and left gaps in the case despite the significant amount involved in the proceedings. The hearing was adjourned until October 7; the court also ordered that its ruling be sent to the trial court, the Establishment Secretary in Islamabad, and the Sindh chief secretary.
