Approval of unfreezing Suleman Shehbaz’s bank accounts of eight companies has been given by a special court in Lahore on Monday.
The bank accounts have been approved for unfreezing for the purpose of paying salaries to the employees. Suleman Shehbaz is a proclaimed offender in Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) Rs16 billion money laundering case.
Defence counsel Amjad Pervez had informed the court that due to freezing of bank accounts, the employees of Suleman Shehbaz’s owned companies had not been paid salaries for over a year.
Pervez also maintained in the court that Suleman Shehbaz was only a shareholder and not the owner of the companies.
Abid Rasool Awan, secretary of the companies, had maintained in his application filed in the court that thousands of employees of Chiniot Sugar Mills and Ramzan Sugar Mills were not being paid salaries since the companies’ bank accounts were frozen by the FIA.
Presiding Judge Ijaz Hassan Awan, while allowing the application, directed the concerned banks to unfreeze the accounts.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Hamza Shehbaz have also been allowed a one-time exemption from personal appearance. Earlier, the court was informed that PM Shehbaz was out of country on official tour whereas Hamza had applied for exemption on medical basis.
The court, while seeking arguments for acquittal of Shehbaz Sharif and Hamza Shehbaz, postponed further hearing till September 30.
Meanwhile, the interim pre-arrest bail of the two had already been confirmed by the court.
