NAB probes Nawaz Sharif at Kot Lakhpat jail over illegal use of bulletproof govt vehicles

LAHORE: A National Accountability Bureau (NAB) team on Monday questioned former prime minister Nawaz Sharif for more than two and a half hours over the purchase and alleged illegal use of more than 30 bulletproof government vehicles.

Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and Nawaz's daughter, confirmed the investigation by the four-member NAB team at the Kot Lakhpat Jail (Lahore Central Prison) where the former prime minister is being held since December 2018 after his conviction in the Al-Azizia corruption reference.

The ongoing inquiry by the anti-graft body pertains to the allegedly illegal use of 34 bulletproof cars that were purchased from Germany sans duty for guests of the 19th SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) summit — in 2016.

According to NAB, Sharif had subsequently added 20 of those 34 cars to his own motorcade and he, as well as his daughter, Maryam Nawaz, used the vehicles for their personal use as well.

The anti-corruption watchdog further noted that the statement of Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, the former prime minister and a member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), had already been recorded and that Fawad Hasan Fawad and the ex-foreign secretary had also been questioned in this regard.

The NAB further maintained that officers associated with the foreign ministry went beyond their authority with regard to the bulletproof cars.

In a message on her Twitter account on Monday, Maryam rubbished the investigation, point fingers at "fake Prime Minister" Imran Khan who used the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government's helicopter for personal use was above the law.

She said that the only case left was to prosecute Nawaz Sharif for being voted in as prime minister.