Toshakhana case: Zardari to appear before accountability court today

By Muhammad YaseenPublished On 05 Jan 2023

ISLAMABAD: Former president and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari will appear before an accountability court in the Toshakhana reference today.

The accountability court had summoned the former president to appear before it today. Asif Ali Zardari reached Islamabad from Karachi on Sunday as the People’s Party decided to show its political muscle during the hearing of the case.

Amid tight security, PPP chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, other party leaders and supporters have reached the accountability court to show solidarity with the former president. The party leadership had directed its members of the Parliament and People’s Lawyers Forum to reach Islamabad today.

The court issued warrants for Zardari in Toshakhana accountability reference. Former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani has been granted exemption from appearance in hearing of the reference.

Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who has also been named in the reference, challenged his summoning by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Toshakhana reference in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

Toshakhana reference

The NAB had filed a reference with the accountability court against the former heads of the state and governments for not depositing luxury vehicles and valuable gifts received from the foreign leaders in the treasury.

Zardari had received expensive cars as a gift from Libya and the UAE as president but did not deposit it in the Tosha Khana, the sources added.

The reference states that Zardari and Sharif obtained cars from Toshakhana by paying 15 per cent of the price of the cars. The bureau further alleged that Gilani facilitated Zardari and Nawaz in this regard.