Panama Papers: Nawaz Sharif appears in court, case adjourned till Nov 7
The head of the ruling PML-N party, who was disqualified as the prime minister by the Supreme Court in July for dishonesty in declaring his assets, returned on Thursday to Islamabad after an arrest warrant was issued for him.
An anti-corruption case against Nawaz Sharif was adjourned till November 7 after the ousted prime minister appeared in the accountability court along with his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Mohammad Safdar on Friday.
Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law arrived at the judicial complex in the morning to appear in the anti-corruption court to be present for the hearing of cases filed against them by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
The head of the ruling PML-N party, who was disqualified as the prime minister by the Supreme Court in July for dishonesty in declaring his assets, returned on Thursday to Islamabad from London, where his wife Kulsoom Nawaz is being treated for cancer.
Sharif returned to Pakistan after the ant-graft court issued a bailable arrest warrant for him because he had skipped earlier hearings.
The judge adjourned the hearing because he had not received an order passed by the Islamabad high court on Thursday for clubbing three cases against the Sharif family. The high court had accepted Sharif’s petition for the cases to be taken up together.
This was the first time Sharif appeared for a hearing since he, his daughter and son-in-law were indicted on October 19.
The former premier left Punjab House in Islamabad for the court amid high security. Tight security measures were also put in place at the judicial complex with large contingents of troops deployed in and around the area.
Talking to the media, information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said Sharif had presented himself in person at all the platforms where he was summoned. His absence in some cases was because of a genuine reason, which was that he was looking after his wife in London.
Sharif appeared in the court on September 26 and October 2, while he skipped proceedings, despite being summoned, on September 19, October 9, October 13 and October 26.
During the last month, he was looking after his ailing wife in London. However, due to his continuous absence, the court issued the bailable arrest warrant on October 26.
The Sharif family is facing trial in connection with cases filed by the NAB pertaining to the Avenfield flats, Al-Azizia Steel Mills and Hill Metal Establishment.
Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law have pleaded not guilty to the charges. His sons Hassan and Hussain were named co-accused in the charge-sheet in the cases. They are currently outside Pakistan.