ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Ishaq Dar was indicted on Wednesday by the accountability court hearing the Supreme Court-directed corruption reference against him.
Dar denied all charges and vowed to prove his innocence in court.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) submitted a list of 28 witnesses, which it will now begin to produce in court at the next hearing on October 4.
Dar reached the court a little before 9am amid tight security arrangements and faced trouble getting into the court complex owing to the huge crowd.
Dar then got back into his vehicle as the gates of the complex were still shut. Police officials feared that if they opened the gates the hugh crowd would get into the complex.
Later, security officials escorted Dar to the court complex from its rear gate. The media was disallowed from entering the premises, as were lawyers and litigants.
However, a number of lawyers were seen climbing over the gate to enter the complex.
Once the charges against the finance minister were read out by Judge Mohammad Bashir, Dar refused to accept the charges.
According to sources, Dar vowed in court that his assets are according to his means, saying he will prove his innocence.
The NAB then submitted a list of 28 witnesses to the court.
Dar pleaded the court to grant him exemption from appearance in the case as the charges have been levelled. However, NAB opposed Dar’s plea and the court did not issue any order on it today.
The court then ordered NAB to produce its witnesses and adjourned the hearing until October 4.
