NAB initiates inquiry against Sharif family’s another sugar mills

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has tightened a noose around the Sharif brothers and initiated a probe related to non-payments in Brothers Sugar Mills. According to the sources, the inquiry was initiated by NAB Rawalpindi. It is learnt that those facing investigation include Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Hamza Shehbaz, Yousaf Abbas and other owners of the sugar mills. Shehbaz Sharif and his cousin Mian Aslam Bashir owns 57.77% shares of the mill. Mian Aslam Bashir sold Brothers Sugar Mills and Brothers Engineering fraudulently to Sheikh Nishat Ahmed. He also sold 119 acres in Chunian and 110 acres of agriculture land in Bahawalnagar. There was also a stock of sugar amounting to Rs690 million in the mill and it was also sold to Sheikh Nishat. Later, neither Brothers Sugar Mills nor Brothers Engineering nor agriculture land was handed over to him. It has been alleged that Sheikh Nishat was harassed in the name of Shehbaz Sharif when he insisted on getting the mill and other land. He was told that Shehbaz Sharif owns the shares of the mill. He got registered the cases against the Sharif family, but the police did not support him. On the other hand, Brothers’ Sugar Mills former CEO Mian Bashir has challenged the NAB notices in the Lahore High Court (LHC).

NAB writes letter to freeze assets of Shehbaz, family

On July 18, Opposition Leader in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif again got into hot waters as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) dispatched letters to the concerned departments for freezing the properties and vehicles he and his family own. In separate letters written to various departments, the corruption watchdog body ordered freezing of all properties owned by the former Punjab chief minister and his family members, including Hamza Shehbaz, Sulaiman Shehbaz, Nusrat Shehbaz and Tehmina Durrani. The letters have been sent to deputy commissioners (DCs) of Haripur and Model Town, and director generals of excise department, Defence Housing Authority (DHA), Lahore Development Authority (LDA), SECP, Judicial Housing Authority and JDA. The NAB sent a letter to Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) to freeze the 14 companies properties belonging to Hamza and Sulaiman; Shehbaz family’s trading assets in Ramzan Sugar Mills, European-Asian Trading Co, Madina Trading, Sharif Feed Mills, Madina Construction Co, Sharif Poultry Farm, Sharif Dairy Farm, Ramzan Energy, Sharif Milk Products, Crystal Plastics, Chiniot Power, Ag Energy Consultants, Al-Arabia Sugar Mills and Unitas Power. The frozen assets include three properties belonging to Tehmina Durrani in Hairpur’s Pir Sohawa tourist resort; two Toyota Land Cruiser SUVs owned by Shehbaz Sharif; two plots (87 and 96) in Model Town’s block-H owned by Nusrat Shehbaz; two plots belonging to Tehmina Durrani in DHA Lahore’s Phase-V; 14. In addition, the letter further noted that a nine-Kanal house in Dunga Gali in Ayubia’s Galyat area was also registered in Nusrat Shehbaz’s name. The anti-graft watchdog in its letter also mentioned that nine plots in Lahore’s Johar Town were registered in the name of Sharif's son, Hamza Shehbaz. According to the NAB letter, the aforementioned vehicles and properties can neither be sold off nor their ownership transferred to someone else's name.