An accountability court in Islamabad granted President Asif Ali Zardari presidential immunity under Article 248 (2) of the Constitution in the Park Lane and Toshakhana references and barred the ongoing proceedings against him.

As long as Asif Ali Zardari holds the position of the president of the country, the proceedings against him in the cases cannot proceed further, said the written order by Judge Nasir Javed.

The written order added that the prosecution raised no objection to President Zardari’s plea, hence it was approved and case proceedings were halted until the end of his tenure as president of Pakistan.

In the Park Lane case, Zardari was accused of influencing relevant authorities during his tenure as the president during the PPP tenure to allegedly obtain loans for his front companies.

He was accused of receiving a loan of Rs1.5 billion released for Parthenon Private Limited “with ill intention”, and the money was later claimed to have been transferred for his personal use through fake bank accounts.

The National Accountability Bureau accused him of causing a loss of Rs3.77 billion to the national exchequer.