President Asif Zardari enjoys immunity from NAB cases, rules court

An accountability court (AC) in Islamabad on Saturday halted the hearing of Park Lane and Toshakhana vehicles references against Asif Ali Zardari, saying he enjoyed immunity as the president of Pakistan, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.  

In his written order on the petition filed by Zardari, seeking immunity for himself in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) cases, AC judge Nasir Javed Rana made it clear that as long as the petitioner was the country’s president, no action could be taken against him.    

The judge further wrote that in the petition Zardari had filed under article 248 (II) of the constitution, he had taken the stance that there could be no criminal action against him as long as he was in the President’s House. “The prosecution neither objected to the petition nor did it oppose it,” read the verdict.  

“As a matter of fact neither a case could be registered against Zardari, nor action could be taken against him as per the article under which the petition had been filed,” the judge wrote.

“Therefore, his plea seeking immunity as the head of the state is accepted,” read the decision.

Reporter: Hashir Ahsan