The indictment of former chief minister Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and others was delayed in a case of illegal appointments in the Punjab Assembly by the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Punjab.
The court delayed the indictment due to absence of two accused during Thursday’s hearing. Anti-Corruption Court Judge Arshad Hussain conducted the case proceedings, wherein Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and Muhammad Khan Bhatti were also produced.
During the proceedings, a counsel for the accused, Sami Ullah and Waqas Sarwar, submitted applications to exempt his clients from personal appearance for one-day.
At this, the court observed if all the accused have appeared today, then the indictment could have taken place. However, the court accepted applications of the accused and exempted them from personal appearance for one-day. The court adjourned further hearing till February 12 and summoned all the accused for indictment on the next date of hearing.
The court had summoned all the accused for indictment after distribution of copies of challan at the last hearing.
The ACE Punjab had registered the case, accusing Parvez Elahi of unlawful appointments and kickbacks. Allegedly, qualified candidates were denied positions while those who had not taken exams were appointed. The ACE claimed that, as then chief minister, Parvez Elahi misused his authority, influencing appointments after receiving bribes.
