The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has scheduled the hearing for former Prime Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif’s appeal against his conviction in the Al-Azizia reference for December 7.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has also scheduled its appeal to increase Sharif’s sentence for the same hearing. Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Mian Gul Hasan Aurangzeb of the IHC will preside over the proceedings, as reported by Express News.
Last month, the capital’s high court accepted applications for the revival of Sharif’s appeals against his convictions in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia corruption references. Sharif faced convictions in the Avenfield case in July 2018 and the Al-Azizia case in December of the same year. Subsequently, he filed appeals against these convictions in the IHC. However, on June 24, 2021, an IHC bench led by Justice Farooq dismissed the appeals due to Sharif’s repeated non-appearance in court.
Despite serving a seven-year jail term following his conviction in the Al-Azizia case, Sharif was granted rare permission to seek medical treatment abroad in October 2019. However, he chose not to return to the country, leading both the IHC and an accountability court to declare him a proclaimed offender.
In a significant development in favor of the former prime minister, the Islamabad High Court issued an acquittal verdict in the Avenfield case last week, clearing a major obstacle for his potential return to office. Additionally, a concise written order regarding Sharif’s acquittal in the Avenfield reference was released. According to the order, the NAB prosecutor referenced the decision in the case of Maryam Nawaz and her husband Captain (retd) Safdar during the hearing.
The order highlighted that in the acquittal of Maryam and Safdar, the court observed that NAB lacked documentary evidence to support the case against Nawaz Sharif. It further noted that the acquittal of Maryam Nawaz and Captain Safdar has not been contested. Consequently, the court approved the appeal against Sharif’s sentence, ordering his acquittal. A detailed decision outlining the reasons for the acquittal will be issued at a later date.
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