Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The accountability court on Friday indicted ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif in third graft reference, which pertains to his business concern Flagship Investment Ltd along with 15 other offshore companies, filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against him on the Supreme Court’s July 28 orders in the Panama Papers case.

As the hearing commenced, judge Muhammad Bashir read out the charge sheet in presence of Zafir Khan, who was nominated by the legal team of Nawaz Sharif as his ‘pleader’.

After hearing the charge sheet, Zafir Khan pleaded ‘not guilty’ and vowed to contest the case. After framing the charge, the court directed the prosecution to produce evidence and witnesses on the next hearing, which has been set October 26, when the court will start regular trial on all the three references.

The court also summoned one of the prosecution witness, Jahangir Ahmad, on the next hearing and observed that the right of accused persons to fair trial will be ensured.

The charge sheet read that the former prime minister had assets beyond his known sources of income. It said he remained chairman of a foreign company, Capital FZE, from 2007-14, despite holding highest public office in Pakistan and that the Supreme Court disqualified him for hiding his association with this business concern.

It said he held public offices between 2007 and 2014, when he was also the chairman of Flagship Investment. It said Sharif had accepted before the joint investigation team (JIT) and the Supreme Court that he was a shareholder in the company. The charge sheet further said that Sharif told the JIT that he was a shareholder in 15 companies, including Flagship Investments, Hartstone Properties, Que Holdings, Quint Eaton Place 2, Quint Saloane, Quaint, Flagship Securities, Quint Gloucester Place, Quint Paddington, Flagship Developments, Alanna Services (BVI), Lankin SA (BVI), Chadron, Ansbacher, Coomber and Capital FZE, Dubai.

It said Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz were Sharif’s dependents in 1989 and 1990, however he submitted the record of assets for only Hassan from 1990 to 1995. It said Sharif had held important positions during last 37 years in public office, including those as chief minister and prime minister. On October 19, Sharif was indicted in the Azizia Steel Mills, Hill Metals Establishment and the Avenfield properties references, whereas his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (r) Safdar were indicted only in the Avenfield reference.

Published in Daily Times, October 21^st 2017.