QUETTA, Aug 26: A division bench of the Balochistan High Court has restored a plea bargain between a contractor of the food department and the National Accountability Bureau.

An accountability court had convicted the contractor, Shamraz Khan, in a corruption reference and awarded him imprisonment and a fine of Rs990 million. Later, he settled the dispute with the NAB and made a plea bargain to pay Rs150 million of which he paid Rs85 million and due to some reasons could not pay the remaining amount.

The contractor approached the high court against the verdict of the trial court.

The division bench comprising Chief Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed and Justice Akhtar Zaman Malghani on Tuesday restored the plea bargain and allowed him to pay the remaining amount in six instalments till August 2005.

The bench also ordered that till the final payment the appellant’s mortgaged property documents would remain with the court.

Afghans arrested: The Pakistani border security authorities have arrested over two dozen Afghan nationals including an Afghan army officer for entering into Pakistani illegally near Chaman on Monday.

Security measures have been enhanced at the border by the Pakistani authorities to check illegal movement of Afghan nationals, official sources said.

According to these sources the officer of the Afghan army was taken into custody by the Frontier Corps (FC) men from Roghani area, some 20km inside Chaman. During the initial investigation he told FC that he belonged to Afghan army. He is the second Afghan army officer who has been taken into custody by the Pakistani border security authorities during the last three days.

Sources added authorities had also arrested around 30 Afghan nationals from the border area and Chaman township.

“Cameras have also been installed at the border for watching illegal movement of wanted people,” sources said.

Iranian woman: A division bench of the Balochistan High Court has ordered that an Iranian woman who was kidnapped and sexually assaulted should be handed over to the Iranian consulate at Quetta to facilitate her return to the country.

The bench, comprising Chief Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed and Justice Akhtar Zaman Malghani, heard woman who was produced on Monday before the court on a suo-motu notice.

The woman submitted that she was going to Mushad two years ago, but Gul Muhammad and Juma Khan abducted and subjected her to criminal assault. After the incident, the sessions court Quetta had directed to keep her in Darul Aman for evidence as a witness in the case.

She asked for the court’s permission to go to her country and submitted that the Iranian consulate at Quetta could make arrangement for her return.

An Iranian consulate representative, who was also present in the court, pleaded that the consulate could facilitate her return.

The court observed that after perusal of the case file, the woman’s stay in Darul Aman was not necessary and allowed her to go back to Iran.

CITY BUDGET: City Nazim Muhammad Rahim Kakar presented Rs1.4 billion budget for the year 2003-04 here on Monday.

Out of the total amount Rs129.4 million have been allocated for different development projects.

Mr Kakar stated that Rs962 million would be spent for non-development expenditures whereas the amount for development expenditures (including new ones) was Rs14.3 million.

The breakdown of the amount allocated for development expenditures is: Rs21 million for education, Rs2 million for health, Rs30 million for social security and welfare, Rs6.5 million for agriculture, Rs2.5 million for livestock and forest, Rs19 million for rural development and Rs8.9 million for rural development of union council office.

City Nazim said funds from the president’s development programme estimated to Rs7.5 million and Rs30 million would be utilized through citizens community board.

Mr Kakar said that Wasa and the QDA were part of the city government and the former had spent Rs110 million during the year 2002-03 and now Rs700 million had been allocated to Wasa for the year 2003-04.

He urged upon the federal and provincial governments to announce special packages for the provincial capital as similar packages had been announced for other cities.