Court acquits Nawaz Sharif in Al-Azizia reference also

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has acquitted former prime minister and PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif in Al-Azizia reference also, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

An IHC divisional bench consisting of Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb pronounced the verdict a few minutes after it was reserved.

The court also rejected the National Accountability Bureau’s plea to send the case back to the trial court and heard the case on merits.

Earlier, the IHC reserved its verdict on the appeal filed by Nawaz Sharif against his conviction in the Al-Azizia reference.

Before that, while again turning down the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) request to send the reference back to the accountability court (AC), Chief Justice (CJ) of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Aamer Farooq said it emphatically that the bench would hear the case on merit.

“The purpose of hearing the appeal is to ascertain whether the verdict given in the case was based on proofs,” the CJ said, adding, “Wajid Zia had himself admitted that there existed no material to suggest that the property belonged to the PML-N supremo.”

Justice Farooq said the document provided by Zia proved nothing against the appellant.

He asked the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor to inform the court on what grounds the bureau had tried to prove that former prime minister and PTI Chairman Nawaz Sharif was guilty in Al-Azizia reference.

“You must have proof or witnesses in support of your allegation that the former prime minister was found involved in corrupt practices. Please come to the point.” the judge remarked.

The prosecutor replied that the NAB had filed the reference against Nawaz in the light of the order of the Supreme Court (SC) dated July 28.

He further said that the evidence collected by the NAB was part of the record.

He said that Nawaz had been indicted on the basis of corruption and corrupt practices. “Officials of Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), different banks, and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) appeared in the court as witnesses,” he said, adding, “This is a white collar crime.”

Evidence was collected, he went on to say, not only from within the country but also from outside the country.

The prosecutor argued that the former prime minister’s sons did not have the resources to set up the mills. “Please tell us how Nawaz is connected to the case,” the judge asked.

The prosecutor its simple answer is that the appellant’s sons did not have the means to build these assets.

“We cannot give the decision merely on the basis of a hypothesis,” the CJ said, and asked the prosecutor to show proofs to support the allegation that the PML-N supremo had sent the money abroad through illegal means. “And it is also established that Nawaz’s father Mian Sharif had a business,” he added.

Earlier, a large number of police personnel have taken their positions as security has been tightened in and around the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in the court in connection with the hearing of the Al-Azizia Steel Mills reference.

No unconcerned people will be allowed to enter the court’s premises, and only the people, with special passes issued by the registrar office, will be let in.

On the last hearing, Nawaz’s lawyer Amjad Pervaiz had completed his arguments on his client’s appeal against his conviction in the case.

Reporter: Farzana Siddique