ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Court in Lahore on Friday handed over former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s principal secretary, Fawad Hassan Fawad, to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on 14-day physical remand, reported Radio Pakistan.
Fawad was arrested on Thursday after he failed to satisfy the anti-graft body over his alleged association with the Ashiana-e-Iqbal housing scam.
He is charged on various counts of alleged corruption, including the Ashiana-e-Iqbal case, and working in a private bank from 2005 to 2006 without formal permission.
The country’s top watchdog requested that the accountability court grant physical remand of the accused for further investigation.
Fawad wrongfully awarded the Ashiana-e-Iqbal contract to “favorites” when it was legally won by construction company Chaudhry Latif and Sons, NAB officials said.
This resulted in the government having to pay 5.9 million Pakistani rupees ($48,470) in compensation to the company. Due to the delay, the project’s cost escalated by billions of rupees.
Additionally, in his capacity as provincial health secretary, Fawad is said to have acquired six mobile health units purchased at a higher-than-market rate, said the officials.
He is also being probed by the NAB for possessing assets beyond known sources of income. Sharif on Thursday called Fawad’s arrest “regrettable.”
Sharif’s top aide handed to NAB on 14-day physical remand
Sharif’s top aide handed to NAB on 14-day physical remand
Pakistan orders uninterrupted electricity during Ramadan pre-dawn, sunset hours
- Power cuts to be shifted outside Sehri and Iftar timings across country
- Directive applies to all distribution companies including Karachi’s K-Electric
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s power ministry has ordered electricity distributors to ensure uninterrupted supply during pre-dawn and sunset meals in the holy month of Ramadan, according to an official directive issued this week, even as the country continues to grapple with chronic shortages and losses in its power sector.
Ramadan, which begins on Thursday in Pakistan, typically sees a sharp spike in household consumption during Sehri (pre-fast meal) and Iftar (meal at sunset), making outages during those hours politically sensitive in a country where electricity shortfalls and scheduled load shedding remain common.
Pakistan’s power sector has struggled for years with circular debt — unpaid bills and subsidies that cascade through the system — as well as electricity theft and distribution losses, forcing utilities to manage supply through rotating outages, especially in high-loss neighborhoods.
“The DISCOs have been directed to strictly avoid unannounced load shedding during the holy month of Ramadan,” a Power Division spokesperson said in a statement.
The latest directive issued on Feb. 17 applies nationwide, including Karachi’s privately run K-Electric utility, and requires adherence to announced load-shedding schedules to minimize disruptions during the month.
Under the standard operating procedures issued by the Ministry of Energy, all distribution companies must establish dedicated control rooms supervised by their chief executives to monitor supply and respond to complaints in real time.
Even in high-loss areas like neighborhoods where bill recovery is weak and outages are more frequent, utilities must maintain supply during Sehri and Iftar, shifting load management to other hours instead.
Authorities said the measures were also intended to prevent further buildup of arrears and system losses by aligning power supply with demand peaks while continuing anti-theft enforcement operations.
Pakistan frequently introduces special power management plans during Ramadan, when public frustration over outages tends to intensify and governments face pressure to ensure uninterrupted electricity for religious routines.
