KARACHI – A banking court in Karachi extended the interim bail of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Faryal Talpur and former president Asif Ali Zardari in a money laundering case on Tuesday.
Zardari had obtained a protective bail from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in the case on August 18, however, the court had directed the former president to appear before the trial court by September 3.
As the hearing progressed today, Talpur appeared before the court; Zardari’s lawyer apprised the court that his client was in Islamabad for the voting of presidential election hence he could not attend the hearing.
A plea for exemption from appearing in court was submitted by Zardari’s lawyer as well
Following the conclusion of the arguments, the court extended the bail of the PPP leader.
During today’s hearing, the accused Anwar Majeed and Abdul Ghani Majeed were not presented in court.
Afterward, the court adjourned the hearing till September 25.
Money Laundering Probe
The high profile money laundering case was initially registered in 2015 against former Pakistan Stock Exchange chairman Hussain Lawai, who is widely believed to be a friend of former president Zardari.
Later, seven individuals, including Zardari and Talpur, were said to have been found involved in using those accounts for suspicious transactions which totaled Rs35 billion. The accounts were allegedly used to channel funds received through kickbacks.
Last month, Lawai and banker Taha Raza were also detained and booked for allegedly facilitating the opening of 29 ‘fake’ accounts through which the money was allegedly laundered through different companies, including M/s Zardari Group.
Talpur had also obtained an interim pre-arrest bail in the case after depositing a surety bond worth Rs2 million.
Both the siblings are facing corruption charges relating to fake accounts and fictitious bank transactions that they had illegally channeled funds through the said accounts in connivance with the chief executive officers of major banks.
In August, the duo also appeared before a joint investigation team of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Islamabad to record their statement in the multi-billion rupee money laundering and fake bank accounts case open against them.
The Supreme Court is also conducting hearings in the case and Zardari’s close confidante Anwar Majeed was also arrested from the top court’s premises in the case.
