Fake accounts case: IHC extends Zardari, Talpur's pre-arrest bail.

ISLAMABAD -- The Islamabad High Court on Wednesday granted a 19-day extension of pre-arrest bail to former president Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) lawmaker Faryal Talpur in the case pertaining to money laundering of billions through fictitious bank accounts.

The two-member bench comprising Justice Amir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani granted pre-arrest bail till April 29.

In the hearing, Justice Farooq inquired about the number of cases registered against Zardari. 'There are two investigations and three inquiries open against the PPP co-chairman,' replied a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) representative. He added that he could only reveal details of cases in which Zardari had been summoned already.

The court has given NAB until April 29 to submit reply regarding number of cases against the former president.

Fake accounts case: IHC grants Zardari, Talpur pre-arrest bails

PPP's top leadership, Omni Group's Anwar Majeed and his son Abdul Ghani Majeed, former Pakistan Stock Exchange chairperson Hussain Lawai, Summit Bank Senior Vice-President Taha Raza are among those being investigated in a case related to money laundering of billions through fictitious bank accounts. The matter is also being heard by the Supreme Court.

Previously, the IHC had granted pre-arrest bail to the Zardari siblings on March 28. A total of five applications were filed by the PPP counsel team - four by Zardari and one by Talpur. The petitions sought pre-arrest bail to pre-empt any attempt by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to take them into custody. The IHC granted bail against surety bonds of Rs1 million each per each application.

The move came after a banking court in Karachi accepted the National Accountability Bureau's (NAB) request to transfer the money laundering case to Islamabad. The bureau filed the transfer appeal following the Supreme Court's decision in the fake accounts case wherein the joint investigation team (JIT) report and evidence collected was transmitted to the bureau for further investigations.

Names of Zardari, Talpur struck off no-fly list

The fake accounts case history

Information regarding the fake accounts came to the fore when an intelligence agency picked up a prominent money changer in an unrelated case. In December 2015, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) began a discreet investigation into certain bank accounts through which multi-billion rupee transactions have been made.

Investigators have...