PESHAWAR: The National Accountability Bureau, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has summoned a former secretary of the administration department for recording statement in an inquiry into the alleged use of the provincial government helicopters by ruling PTI leader Imran Khan.

A `call-up` notice was issued to Hassan Mehmud Yousafzai, who is currently the Fata Secretariat secretary (law and order), asking him to appear before a combined investigation team on Mar 14.

The notice was issued under Section 19 of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999.

Last month, NAB chairman retired justice Javed Iqbal had taken notice of the matter after a section of the media reported it, and directed the NAB, KP, to look into it.

The NAB had alleged that there was a documentary evidence that Imran Khan had paid Rs2.1 million for using an Mi-171 and an Ecureuil helicopter belonging to the KP government for a total of 74 hours, which amounted to Rs28,000 per hour.

It added that had Khan used a private company`s choppers, it would have cost him an hourly fare of between Rs1 million and Rs1.2 million for the Mi-171 and between Rs0.5 million and Rs0.6 million for the Ecureuil.

Citing a statement of Chief Minister KP Pervez Khattal(`s principal adviser on technical training and aviation, the NAB report added that the use of KP helicopters could cost as much as Rs0.2 million per hour.

It added thatthe PTIchiefshouldhave paid the provincial government Rs11.1 million but the official documents only mentioned the payments of Rs2.1 million.-Bureau Report