ISLAMABAD: Accountability Court-I Judge Muhammad Bashir Tuesday decided to adjourn the Al-Azizia corruption reference against Nawaz Sharif till the high court’s ruling on an appeal filed by the Sharif family.
The former prime minister’s legal counsel had earlier petitioned the Islamabad High Court (IHC) against conducting jail trial and seeking suspension of the sentence in the Avenfield reference.
A two-member IHC bench comprising Justice Moshin Akhtar Kayani and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb are hearing both the petitions.
As the hearing went under way, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor Afzal Qureshi appeared in court. He apprised the court that the Sharif family’s appeal has been fixed for hearing in the IHC later in the day. Judge Bashir then decided to postpone the hearing till the IHC’s ruling on the appeal.
Later, after Nawaz’s secondary counsel Saad Hashmi appeared in court, Judge Bashir told him that both of his client’s appeals had been sent to the high court. The counsel said that his client had also submitted a petition in the IHC to transfer the case to another court.
“We have heard that the law ministry has also recommended the jail trial,” Judge Bashir noted. Hashmi responded by saying that his client had not received a notice in this regard.
In an informal conversation with journalists covering the trial, Judge Bashir observed that the media will be allowed to cover Nawaz’s jail trial.
The judge apprised the media persons that special passes would be issued to the journalists to enter the Adiala jail, where the former premier is imprisoned these days.
Judge Bashir had sentenced Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (r) Safdar to jail in the Avenfield properties reference on July 6.
On Monday, Judge Bashir reportedly recused himself from hearing Al-Azizia and Flagship references against the Sharif family.
In a letter to IHC, the judge stated that he had announced the verdict of Avenfield properties case and could not hear Al-Azizia and Flagship references. He noted that Nawaz’s counsel had also objected to him hearing the other two cases. The letter was reportedly written to IHC Chief Justice Anwar Kasi two days ago, who is on leave.
Published in Daily Times, July 18th 2018.
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