• Buzdar appeared before the court along his counsel
• He said all allegations against petitioner were baseless.
• He said the NAB issued a call-up notice to petitioner

LAHORE: An accountability court on Thursday granted interim pre-arrest bail to former chief minister Sardar Usman Buzdar in an inquiry of illegal assets and misuse of authority initiated against him by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Buzdar appeared before the court along with his counsel Barrister Momin Malik.

The counsel argued that the NAB with mala fide intention and in connivance with the incumbent federal government had been politically victimizing the petitioner. He said all the allegations against the petitioner were baseless.

He said the NAB issued a call-up notice to the petitioner and also directed the police to ensure his appearance before the investigation team on Feb 16.

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He asked the court to set aside the impugned notice and the inquiry for being illegal.

After going through the case record, Presiding Judge Sajjad Ahmad granted interim pre-arrest bail to Buzdar subject to furnishing two surety bonds of Rs100,000 each.

The judge also directed the former chief minister to join the investigation before the NAB.

NAB Special Prosecutor Hafiz Asadullah Awan received a notice by the court for submission of a reply to the petition by Feb 27.