By Adnan Rafique
ISLAMABAD: An accountability court on Friday directed a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor to approach the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to serve summons on former Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) chairperson Farzana Raja and another accused, who are out of the country.
Accountability Judge Muhammad Bashir was hearing a reference with regard to alleged embezzlement in the BISP. NAB prosecutor Sohail Arif informed the judge that Farzana Raja and Shoaib Khan are out of the country.
The judge, therefore, directed the prosecutor to ensure that court summons are served to both accused through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Earlier this year, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed a reference against the former BISP chairperson for abuse of power. The bureau accused her of inflicting a Rs500 million loss on the national exchequer.
NAB Chairperson Justice (R) Javed Iqbal approved the reference against the PPP leader on December 3, 2019. PM’s Special Assistant on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar, who now heads the BISP, disclosed that about 140,000 government employees had been receiving payments under the financial assistance scheme. She said 2,543 government officials from grade 17 to 21 were among beneficiaries.
