The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Monday interrogated Zulfi Bukhari, a close aide of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, in an ongoing probe against him pertaining to offshore companies.
Bukhari, a London-based businessman, was grilled for over an hour as he appeared along with his counsel before an investigating team of the anti-corruption watchdog in Rawalpindi.
“This was an initial investigation and the case will go on for now,” he told the media shortly after appearing before the NAB. He said that the anti-graft body summoned him again on July 27. To a question, Bukhari said: “My name was not on the Exit Control List and I had said it before as well.”
On June 11, Bukhari was barred from leaving Pakistan. He was later granted a one-time permission to go abroad for six days by the Interior Ministry. Sikandar Bashir Mohmand, the counsel for Zulfi Bukhari, contended that his client left for Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah along with PTI chairman Imran Khan in a special flight from the Noor Khan Airbase when the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) informed him that his name was on the blacklist. A NAB prosecutor informed the court that Zulfi Bukhari failed to appear before the accountability body despite being issued notices. Bukhari replied to a summons on March 20 that he is a British citizen and NAB lacks the jurisdiction to investigate him, the prosecutor said, adding that the bureau was not informed whether the Interior Ministry had placed his name on the blacklist.
Interior Ministry officials informed the bench that they had received a letter from the NAB on May 10, requesting that Bukhari’s name be placed on the Exit Control List. The ministry placed Bukhari’s name on the blacklist after receiving the letter, the officials said. According to Bukhari’s petition, he is facing an inquiry and the NAB has issued multiple notices to him since February this year. The petitioner responded to the third notice saying that since he was a British national, NAB lacked the jurisdiction to investigate him.
Published in Daily Times, June 26th 2018.
