ISLAMABAD: A Senate special committee on Tuesday asked the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Peshawar to send its inquiry officer to the next meeting to explain the case of antique theft from the Peshawar Museum as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sports and Culture Department has claimed no objects are missing.

The issue of the theft or replacement of precious antique items from the Peshawar Museum was raised in Senate by Senator Sitara Ayaz on March 1 and the matter was referred to the special committee.

On Tuesday, the Senate Special Committee to Provide Mechanism for Implementation of Recommendations of Committees met with Senator Dilawar Khan in the chair.

Senators Sitara Ayaz, Javed Abbasi, Rana Mehmoodul Hassan, Nighat Mirza, Khanzada Khan, Shamim Afridi and senior officials from KP and various ministries were attending.

KP sports and culture officials presented a summary that no precious items were missing from the Peshawar Museum.

They said some items had been sent to South Africa and Zurich for exhibition and they will be sent back soon.

They said precious items are stored with the State Bank of Pakistan, that all items are accounted for and none are missing.

However, the officials did not agree to give a guarantee that no artifact was replaced or stolen from the museum.

The meeting was also informed that no case was registered with the KP police regarding theft or replacement of precious antiques from the museum.

Senator Dilawar Khan was not satisfied with the answers provided by officials of the provincial department and said NAB is conducting an inquiry into the case.

`Former Director of Archeology Dr Abdul Samad was in NAB custody. The bureau should provide an update on the inquiry and clear the confusion created by the statement of the provincial department,` he said.

Senator Khan added that when the issue was taken up in the upper house on March 1, then federal minister Ali Mohammad Jan had assured the house that a probe will be conducted into the allegations but now the provincial department is claiming the antique items are not missing.

Senator Javed Abbasi said a confusion had been created after the department`s claim and that NAB officials should be called to explain the case.

Senator Khan said the committee will also visit the museum with archaeology experts from the federal archaeology department as well as independent experts.

He said a date will be decided after consultations with committee members.

He said the KP police will also be consulted about the case of theft from the Peshawar Museum.

Senator Ayaz said she had raised the issue because it is a serious matter and people wanted to know how historical and cultural objects were exported. She urged the convener to fix a date for the committee`s visit next month.

Museum officials told the committee that the Peshawar Museum was established in 1906 and that it houses more than 30,000 antique objects which were found in different excavations from the British Raj till now. It has stored five precious objects with the State Bank of Pakistan.

They said a software was launched in 2005 to save all the museum`s records, mal(ing it difficult to change details of the antiquesitstores.