Daily Times

Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has refused to receive his arrest warrants from the Pakistan High Commission in London, sources said.

An official of the high commission went to serve the arrest warrants sent by the government on Sharif at his London residence but no one received them, the sources added. Later, the high commission sent him copies of the warrants through email, they said.

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) had directed the foreign secretary to ensure production of ex-PM before the court on September 22. He was told to “cause the production of appellant (Mr Sharif) through High Commission of Pakistan in United Kingdom” on Sept 22.

Last week, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Registrar Office had started implementing the orders and issued a notice to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for taking steps to arrest former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

The high court issued the arrest warrants of Nawaz Sharif in the Al-Azizia and Avenfield cases and also sent its copy to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for assisting the relevant authorities in arresting the former premier who is currently residing in London.

Meanwhile, Lahore High Court’s division bench, headed by Justice Sardar Ahmed Naeem, adjourned the pre-arrest bail proceedings of Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif till today (September 22) for further arguments.

The bench was hearing the pre-arrest bail of accused Shehbaz Sharif in alleged assets beyond known sources of income and money laundering cases.

As proceedings commenced, petitioner’s counsel Azam Nazir Tarar argued on the ‘arrest warrant’ issued by the National Accountability Bureau in alleged asset beyond means case contending no ground of arrest was mentioned by the bureau.

His client had been in NAB’s custody but the bureau had not put forward a single query about the assets beyond means case.

Petitioner’s counsel Amjad Pervez implored the court that NAB had summoned Shehbaz in the Saaf Paani company case but arrested him in Ashiyana case after which the bureau filed reference in the Saaf Paani case wherein Shehbaz Sharif had not been arrayed as accused.

“Astonishing enough when NAB felt that it (NAB) is unable to seek further physical remand of Shehbaz Sharif in the Ashiyana case, they arrested the former chief minister in the Ramzan Sugar Mills case,” Pervez said.

He further pointed out that the inquiry of assets beyond means was pending before NAB when the Ramzan Sugar Mill case was prepared and the bureau had tried to seek physical remand in the said case.

He stated that the accountability court turned down NAB’s request for an extension in physical remand on malafide intentions.

To this NAB’s prosecutor Faisal Raza Bukhari, responded that it was NAB’s bonafide that it (NAB) had not obtained Shehbaz Sharif’s physical remand.

In previous proceedings, NAB had submitted its reply opposing the pre-arrest bail of Shehbaz Sharif. NAB in its reply had contended that NAB claimed there is a sufficient incriminating material available on record that connects the petitioner Shehbaz Sharif with the commission of offences of corruption and corrupt practices. The NAB denying the version of the Shehbaz Sharif in his par-arrest bail in assets beyond means and money laundering cases proposed the court that Shehbaz Sharif’s par-arrest bail is liable to be dismissed.