NAB orders physical remand of Maryam Nawaz till August 21

LAHORE: PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz Sharif who was arrested on Thursday by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday, was remanded into NAB’s custody till August 21.

 

Yousaf Abbas, the cousin of Maryam Nawaz will also be presented before the accountability judge today. As NAB had sought a 15 day physical remained for both. Hamza Shahbaz, son of current Opposition Leader was also present in the court due to his involvement in the Sugar Mill Case.

PMLN-N Vice President and the daughter of Former Pakistani Premier Nawaz Sharif was taken into custody by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday. She was arrested in Kot Lakhpat Jail where she was visiting her captive father, the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who is currently under arrest over several corruption cases.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has since stated that the arrest was carried out over money laundering cases connected to the Chaudhry Sugar Mills. Maryam Nawaz had been issued a notice to appear before NAB on Thursday in order to provide some answers regarding the case, she took more time to provide her response and went to Jail to meet with her father.

Yousaf Abbas, who is a cousin of Maryam Nawaz, has also been arrested regarding his connections to the CSM case and both will appear before the Accountability Court in Lahore today.

Under direct orders from the NAB Chairman, both Maryam Nawaz and Yousaf Abbas will be medically examined by a team of doctors.

The press release issued by the NAB states that NAB will issue an application for their remands to an accountability court in Lahore. NAB had made the arrests after showing the respective parties the arrest warrants issued by the court.

NAB had initiated its investigation regarding the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case in October 2018 when the PML-N’s government’s financial monitoring unit had reported to NAB their suspicions over a transaction that involved several billion rupees in connection to the CSM. Maryam Nawaz was a major stakeholder in the CSM and was called upon for further inquiry on August 8th, when she refused to visit the NAB headquarters for which afterward she and her cousin were arrested for the aforementioned case.

PML-N President and current Opposition Leader Shahbaz Sharif, called out the government for arresting Maryam as a distraction tactic used to shift focus from the current developments in the Kashmir issue. He condemned the arrest of the former Prime Minister and his daughter.

“Maryam was arrested in front of her father and uncle. Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz’s arrests prove once again that the PTI government is complicit with the NAB. Maryam’s arrest is an attempt to distract [everyone] from the government’s failed policy on Kashmir,” stated the former Chief Minister of Punjab. “It’s a tactic to distract from the sinking economy, from the crashing stock market.”

“Imran Khan is mistaken if he thinks he can pressure us with such cruel tactics. They are pushing us against the wall, but we won’t be pushed back,” he affirmed.