Khawaja Saad Rafique, a leader of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), criticized the new law approved on Tuesday that extends the time a suspect can be held in custody by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from 14 days to 40 days.
“This draconian law cannot be supported, therefore, the ordinance should be withdrawn,” he said while reminding that the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance was formulated by a dictator.
The NAB law has been changed to allow holding suspects for up to 40 days instead of 14.
Acting President Yusuf Raza Gilani signed two new ordinances on Monday, the NAB (Amendment) Ordinance 2024 and the Elections Act (Amendment) Ordinance 2024, following Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s advice because President Asif Zardari is in Dubai.
These changes came after the federal cabinet approved the amendments. The new NAB law reduces the jail time for an officer convicted of creating cases with bad intentions from five years to two years.
The new Elections Act (Amendment) Ordinance 2024 allows retired judges, along with current judges, to be members of election tribunals.
