ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has tightened noose around senior officials of Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) in a case against former federal minister and PPP leader Dr Asim Hussain, Some senior officials of OGDCL appeared before NAB officials on Tuesday in connection with the multibillion-rupee case which has already been filed in an accountability court.

NAB has taken all relevant record of the Kunar Pasakhi Deep (KPD) project under which a private company, Jamshoro Joint Venture Ltd (JJVL), was to purify natural gas to remove impurities and hazardous gases capable of damaging Sui Southern Gas Company Limited`s (SSGCL) pipeline network.

`Some of the officials of OGDCL visited the NAB office on Tuesday not to record their statement but to provide some relevant documents required for investigating the case,` OGDCL spokesman Ahmed Hayyat Lakh told Dawn.

He said NAB had written a letter to the OGDCL last month, seeking some relevant record.

The spokesman said the OGDCL had already shared some documents with NAB and the of ficials of OGDCL visited the NAB office to explain further details.

NAB on Feb 19 approved an investigation against Dr Asim Hussain and some senior officials of the OGDCL.

He said the bureau started an investigation against Dr Asim, three former managing directors and a servingone of Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) for causing a loss of Rs10 billion to the national exchequer due to what he called `misappropriation` of state owned entities` funds.

The three former managing directors of SSGCL are Azeem Iqbal Siddiqui, Zuhair Ahmed Siddiqui and Shoaib Warsi and the serving one is Khalid Rehman.

According to NAB, these people allegedly misappropriated funds of SSGCL and OGDCL by providing illegal benefits to the JJVL, a private company dealing with liquefied natural gas (LPG) plant. The former minister has been accused of illegally providing gas worth billions of rupees to the same company from various gas fields, causing a loss of Rs10 billion to the national exchequer.

A NAB`s document said that under a decision of its board of directors in January, 2012, the OGDCL entered into an agreement with the JJVL for purification of Kunar Pasaki Deep (KPD) natural gas to remove impurities and hazardous gases capable of damaging SSGCL`s pipeline network.

ARRESTS: In a separate case, NAB on Tuesday re-arrested Arshad Khan, a former director general of Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA), and his front man, Dr Muhammad Arif, for their alleged involvement in accumulation of illegal assets worth millions of rupees.

The NAB spokesman said the matter was brought to the notice of NAB authorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Taking cognizance of the matter an inquiry was authorised to ascertain real facts and collect requisite evidence regarding moveable and immoveableproperties owned, controlled and possessed by the accused in his own name and in the name of his dependents.

During the course of inquiry it was revealed that the accused Arshad Khan remained posted on key posts like DCO of Malakand, DG of FDMA & DG of Excise from 2008 to 2014. Arshad Khan allegedly piled assets worth millions of rupees during his tenure as DG of FDMA, in his name and in the name of his Dr Mohammad Arif, the spokesman said.

NAB issued details of properties of the accused that included a 10-Marla house in Askari-VI, Nasir Bagh Road, Peshawar, a 25-Marla Hujra in Mouza Malakander, Peshawar, 5-Marla Awami Villa in Bahria Town, Rawalpindi, 43-Marla commercial plot on the University Road in Peshawar worth Rs70 million and two plots in Kanjoo Town, Swat.

Both the accused were operating different joint bank accounts wherein transactions of millions of rupees being made.

Accused Arshad Khan had already been arrested by NAB authorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for allegedly fabricating 161 bogus (fake) survey forms in Mohmand Agency. A cash re covery of R s31 million has been made bythebureauin the case.

A reference of Rs59.6 million has already been filed in the Accountability Court Peshawar for Mohmand Agency.

Funds embezzlement and another reference of about Rs300 million is in the pipeline against accused Arshad Khan for his alleged involvement in looting of funds meant for compensation of the displaced people of Bajaur Agency.