Court hands over Ex-DG excise Gondal to NAB on 10-day physical remand

LAHORE (92 News) – Accountability court on Friday has handed over former Director General Excise and Taxation Akram Ashraf Gondal to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on a 10-day physical remand in liquor license case. According to details, the ex-DG was produced before the court by anti-graft watchdog. The court granted 10-day physical remand and ordered to present him again on September 28. On September 17, 2020, NAB had arrested Akram Ashraf Gondal over his alleged involvement in granting a liquor licence to a private hotel. “It has been disclosed during the inquiry proceedings that the accused (Akram Gondal) technically manoeuvred the whole process to grant L-2 category liquor licence to the said hotel without its eligibility,” said NAB in a statement. Gondal’s arrest is part of an inquiry being done against the former bureaucrat, former principal secretary to Punjab CM Raheel Siddiqui, CM Buzdar and others for allegedly awarding an illegal liquor licence. The anti-corruption watchdog arrested Gondal on claims of corruption and corrupt practices by misusing authority and playing a “pivotal role” in the release of the alleged illegal liquor licence to a private hotel in the provincial capital. NAB Lahore said the officer misused his authority and illegally granted L-2 category licence to a private hotel. It said the hotel couldn't get a licence as it had not fulfilled the prerequisite obtained 4/5 star rating certificate from Punjab’s of Tourist Services Department. The bureau has also claimed that the former DG also did not follow the other necessary procedures and codal formalities in the case. It added that they had arrested the former DG on “sufficient evidence”. On August 18, CM Buzdar in his reply to NAB had stated that the liquor licence allegation was baseless.