ISLAMABAD : Asif Ali Zardari, the former president of Pakistan and co-chairperson of the PPP, challenged on Thursday NAB’s decision to seized his two BMWs and one Toyota Lexus in the Toshakhana reference. On August 18, the accountability court in Islamabad had ordered to seize vehicles of former president Asif Ali Zardari and erstwhile prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Toshakhana case. The accountability court had frozen the ownership of Asif Zardari’s three vehicles including two BMW and one Lexus car. In his plea, Asif Ali Zardari has pleaded the accountability court to stop the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from confiscation of three of his vehicles by terming it an illegal action. The court has served notice to the NAB and sought reply on the plea of the former president on September 24. The NAB had filed a reference with the accountability court against the former heads of the state and governments for not depositing luxury vehicles and valuable gifts received from the foreign leaders in the treasury.
Zardari had received expensive cars as a gift from Libya and the UAE as president but did not deposit it in the Tosha Khana, the sources added. The reference states that Zardari and Sharif obtained cars from Toshakhana by paying 15 per cent of the price of the cars. The bureau further alleged that Gilani facilitated Zardari and Nawaz in this regard. The Toshakhana is an official treasury where gifts from foreign dignitaries or heads of state are deposited. The accountability watchdog has accused Zardari and former PM Nawaz Sharif of obtaining cars from the Toshakhana by paying only 15% of the price of the luxury vehicles. It also alleged that Gillani had facilitated the allotment of the vehicles to Zardari and Nawaz by illegally relaxing the rules. According to the reference, Zardari had received armoured vehicles as a gift from the UAE and Libya between 2005 and 2008 but didn’t report the gifts or deposit them. NNI