Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal has been acquitted Wednesday in the Narowal Sports City case.

Chief Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Saman Rifat Imtiaz heard the petition seeking the dismissal of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reference against Iqbal.

The anti-graft watchdog alleged that Iqbal had illegally initiated a project of Rs 3 billion in Narowal, causing a loss worth billions to the national exchequer. NAB alleged the sports city project was conceived in line with Iqbal’s instruction without any feasibility in 1999.

The court criticized the then NAB Chairman saying that the reference against the PML-N leader was filed on the basis of a news item published by a little-known newspaper Metro Watch.

The high court dismissed the NAB reference and acquitted the PML-N leader.

In his petition, Ahsan had argued that the NAB reference was based on fabricated allegations and was against the facts. He had filed a plea in the accountability court, but it was turned down in February.

Iqbal had pleaded with IHC to set aside the decision of the accountability court and acquit him in the graft reference.

NAB initiated a corruption case against the PML-N leader in 2018 and arrested him in 2019 while an accountability court indicted him in 2020.

Iqbal had always denied all the allegations and had moved IHC to have the corruption reference against him dismissed.

During Wednesday’s hearing, IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah reprimanded the NAB prosecutor for not presenting solid evidence.

The CJ remarked that despite the project being of importance to the public, NAB had intervened.

“[Development] on a project, which was being built for the people’s benefit was stopped. Tell me, who is responsible for stopping a project that was for the benefit of the people?”

“I have asked you repeatedly to point out the corruption in this project,” the CJ said.