QUETTA: Rahmat Saleh Baloch, a senior member of the National Party Balochistan and former provincial health minister, is facing a reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) over allegations of possessing assets beyond known sources of income worth Rs. 282 million.
The reference was filed in December 2020 after investigations suggested that Baloch had acquired assets disproportionate to his declared income.
The bureau claimed that during his tenure as provincial health minister from 2013 to 2018, serving in the cabinets of Dr. Abdul Malik Baloch and Nawab Sanaullah Zehri his wealth and properties saw an unusual and unexplained increase.
Furthermore, the investigators alleged that Rahmat Saleh Baloch, while holding public office, not only accumulated important assets but also utilized benami (anonymous) bank accounts to conceal financial transactions.
These accounts, NAB maintained, were allegedly opened under the names of his brothers, relatives, and even low-grade employees of the provincial health department.
In addition, following the submission of the reference, proceedings began in the Accountability Court Quetta. Initially, the accused was granted bail.
However, in April 2023, the Supreme Court of Pakistan took up NAB’s plea for the cancellation of bail. The apex court listed the case for hearing, focusing on the key allegations of benami accounts and the alleged mixing of official and personal funds.
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Additionally, as the matter remains under trial before the Supreme Court, the outcome is awaited with interest, particularly in political and civil society circles in Balochistan.
