KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Monday issued a notice to the National Accountability Bureau on the appeal of Pakistan Peoples Party MPA Ali Nawaz Shah and his two close relatives against their conviction in a landrevenuefraudcase.

While admitting the appeal of MPA Shah, his cousin, Syed Khadim Ali Shah, and nephew, Imtiaz Ali Shah, against the accountability court judgement for regular hearing, a two-judge bench put off the matter to Sept 21.

Their counsel submitted that the federal government in 1995 provided funds for the construction of Sim Nala on the Left Bank Out-fall Drain, Wapda, and the land acquisition collector, Hyderabad announced payment of compensation to various land owners whose land was acquire d for the project.

They said that the it was alleged in the case against their clients that MPA Shah, Khadim Shah and Imtiaz Shah received payments of Rs500,632, Rs547,525 and Rs431,106 as compensation in excess of their entitlement allegedly on the basis of fake land documents.

The counsel said that the NAB chairman had initially filed a reference against the appellants and others in the accountability court which on Oct 2, 2001 issued non-bailable warrants for their arrest.

They said thatthe three accusedpersons obtainedbail from the trial court that proceeded with the case only against the accused in custody and upon conclusion of the trial the judge held that the appellant were liable to face the penalconsequences.

The counselsaid that the trialjudge alsofailed to consider that the appellants had filed a civil suit in court for compensation and damages against Wapda, which was decreedin theirfavourin2003.

They said that Wapda`s appeal against the judgement of the suit in their favour and subsequent revision application were also dismissed.

They said that the trial judge failed to consider that neither the appellants were party to the fixation of the amount of compensation nor did they participate in such proceedings.

MPA Ali Nawaz Shah, who also served as a federal and provincial minister, was sentenced to five-year imprisonment, while his nephew and cousin were jailed for four and three years in prison, respectively.

He was first elected to the provincial assembly in 1977. He served as the federal minister for industries in 1989. He has been elected a senator and MPA three times since then.