NAB chairman’s appointment challenged in SC

KARACHI: A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court against appointment of former Interior Secretary Major (r) Qamar Zaman Chaudhry as National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman.

Petitioner Syed Mehmood Akhtar Naqvi submitted in the petition that Qamar Zaman Chaudhry’s appointment as NAB chairman was made by the ruling PML-N and opposition Pakistan People’s Party

as part of a deal to protect

the personal interests of both parties leaders as well as to save them from corruption cases.

He submitted that Qamar Zaman does not qualify for the post under Section (6) of the NAB Ordinance as he was not a retired government officer, but he applied for retirement after confirmation of his post as NAB chairman.

He said that names of

many competent retired judges of superior courts as well as former federal tax Ombusman Dr Shoaib Suddle were ignored for the post by Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif and Opposition Leader Khursheed Shah

and appointed the respondent,

who had already enjoyed

key posts in both the PPP

and PML-N governments’ tenure and also considered very close to the PML-N leadership.

He submitted that a contempt of court proceeding was also pending against the respondent in the Supreme Court and prayed the court to declare the appointment of Qamar Zaman as NAB chairman unlawful and against the spirit of NAB Ordinance as well as superior court’s judgment.

The petitioner also requested court to disqualify the prime minister and opposition leader being as members of parliament for violating articles 62, 63 as they appointed unqualified person as National Accountability Bureau chairman in violation of the NAB Ordinance as well as Supreme Court’s judgment.