LAHORE - Bank of Punjab's former president Hamesh Khan allegedly involved in Rs 9 billion fraud, has escaped from the country despite the fact that his name was put on the Exit Control List, a high-raking Punjab government official claimed on Saturday. The source quoted Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif as having disclosed this news at a recent meeting held to review the performance of Bank of Punjab under the new administration. The Punjab CM reportedly expressed his dissatisfaction over the NAB performance and strongly criticised its authorities for their failure to arrest the accused. "CM Shahbaz is quite disappointed over the escape of Hamesh Khan and also not satisfied with the investigations being carried out by NAB in this case," another official seeking anonymity said. The source alleged that former president BoP escaped with the connivance of NAB and FIA authorities. NAB is now interrogating only five senior officers of the bank in Rs 9 billion fraud case while the main accused has fled, he further said. "He has escaped from the country a couple of weeks back. His name was put on the ECL even two months before his escape and the NAB authorities are responsible for his run off," he disclosed to The Nation. The alleged escape of Hamesh from the country despite the fact that his name being put on the ECL, puts a question mark on the performance and credibility of the NAB, another senior official commented while confirming the development. The Punjab government had sacked Hamesh, shortly after the governor of State Bank called on Mian Shahbaz Sharif and brought the matter into his notice that Hamesh had given loans worth over billions of rupees to some industrialists on the instructions of then CM without fulfilling the legal and financial requirements. Sources in the provincial bureaucracy said that the name of Hamesh was put on the ECL on the special request of the Punjab government soon after he had been sacked from the post of the president of Bank of Punjab. The government had fired Hamesh on the charges of giving loans worth over Rs 9 billion to Harris Steels in clear violations of the rules. When contacted, Director NAB Punjab Brig (r) Farooq Hameed said that it was unbelievable that Hamesh had escaped from the country because his name had been put on the ECL and his arrest warrants had also been issued. "I don't think that he has left the country," he said. He further claimed that the NAB was also in touch with the Punjab police and other law enforcement agencies to nab the accused. Samiur Rehman, inspector FIA Immigration and who is posted at Allama Iqbal International Airport, when contacted said there was a possibility that Hamesh might have escaped on fake identity because the authorities only put the name of a person on the ECL and not his picture. Former chief minister Punjab Ch Pervaiz Elahi had appointed Hamesh as the President of BoP, allegedly violating the rules and criteria set by the State Bank of Punjab. The SBP had also expressed its reservations over his appointment and sent a letter to then CM in this regard. But the government did not pay heed to the reservations and asked Hamesh to continue his assignment as the BoP president. It bears mentioning that the bank suffered a great setback after the government sacked Hamesh Khan as the depositors had withdrawn major chunk of money from the bank. The government was left with no other option but to direct the provincial departments and district governments to immediately shift their accounts to the bank to save it from financial collapse. The government also abolished the Commercial Asset Development and Marketing Division Department after sacking the former president and 40 others senior officers.