LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) President Parvez Elahi was swiftly re-arrested by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) team right after his release from Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. The arrest concerns charges of allegedly receiving bribes for development project contracts. Elahi was immediately transferred to Lahore to face these allegations.
Upon his exit from prison, a team from NAB, consisting of members from Rawalpindi and Lahore, apprehended Parvez Elahi again. The NAB prosecutors presented him before a Rawalpindi sessions court, requesting a two-day transitory remand for his transfer to Lahore. However, the court granted only a one-day transitory remand, requiring NAB to present Elahi before the relevant court under safe custody by the following day.
The court order indicated that an arrest warrant for Parvez Elahi was issued on August 11. Despite these developments, Elahi’s legal representative has criticized his recent arrest, branding it as politically motivated. The lawyer has stated they intend to challenge the detention in the Lahore High Court (LHC).
This arrest follows Parvez Elahi’s initial detention on June 1 concerning a graft case involving misappropriating development funds worth Rs70 million in the Gujrat district. Over the past two and a half months, Elahi has been released multiple times on court orders, only to be re-arrested immediately after. In mid-July, he was released from Lahore’s Camp Jail. Still, he was detained under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) ordinance for 30 days.
A video shared by the PTI before his re-arrest captures Parvez Elahi stating, “If they find joy in this manner of action (by arresting me), then let them.”
Background and Allegations
Parvez Elahi is among the co-accused in a bribery case revolving around awarding road contracts within the Gujrat Highways Division. Other individuals implicated in the case include his son, Moonis Elahi, and Mahr Azmat Hayat. The allegations assert that Parvez Elahi and Moonis Elahi received kickbacks from Azmat Hayat directly and through their accountant, Imtiaz Ali Shah.
The co-accused are accused of inflicting significant financial losses on the government while engaging in corruption and practices under Section 9(a) of the NAB ordinance, 1999.
As this legal battle continues, it underscores the ongoing efforts by Pakistani authorities to tackle corruption and ensure accountability within the nation. The repeated arrests and legal proceedings highlight the complexities of such cases and the broader challenges of addressing graft in the country.