Asif Zardari not using AC in prison, says son Bilawal

Islamabad, July 29 (IANS) Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Monday that his father and former President Asif Ali Zardari was not using an air conditioner (AC) in prison.

Bilawal who along with sister Aseefa attended the remand hearing of Asif Zardari and Faryal Talpur told reporters that he had discovered that his father not using the AC facility during his last visit to the prison, Geo News reported.

In June, Zardari was arrested by the NAB in a fake bank accounts case. The accountability court here on Monday extended the National Accountability Bureau's (NAB) 10-day physical remand of both Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur.

"When I and Aseefa went to meet (former) President Zardari in jail he himself had the AC shut. When we asked him about this, he replied this was not something big for him. I and Aseefa are asking him to use this facility," said Bilawal.

He said that his father had not been using the AC facility after Prime Minister Imran Khan, during his visit to the US, announced that A-class jail facilities for former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Zardari would be withdrawn.

Zardari and his sister will now be presented before the accountability court on August 8.

The PPP Chairman told reporters that his party had a legacy of battling dictatorship and this "puppet" government was no contest for them. "We will not compromise on democracy, 18th amendment, 1973 system and media independence."

Bilawal also mentioned that there were no political prisoners during the past tenures of the PPP.