ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif appeared before a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) court on Tuesday in connection with the three corruption references.
The proceedings lasted for only a few minutes after the former premier was allowed to leave. Sharif reportedly informed the NAB court that his wife was not well and he needed to attend her, following which Sharif was granted permission to leave.
The NAB court then adjourned for 10 minutes before continuing with the normal case proceedings. Sharif is will be indicted on October 2 in connection with three corruption cases.
A number of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, including federal ministers, accompanied the former prime minister to his first appearance before the accountability court.
The court had summoned Sharif, who arrived Monday morning from London, after his failure to appear at an earlier hearing on Sept 19.
The court had also summoned Sharif’s sons — Hussain and Hassan — but they are not appearing today as they are still in London tending to their mother, who is undergoing cancer treatment.
During the court appearance, some PMN-L followers started chanting slogans in Sharif’s support inside the courtroom, annoying the judge Mohammad Bashir, who then asked the former premier to leave as his lawyers were there to represent him.
In its July 28 verdict in the Panama case, the apex court had ordered NAB to file references against Nawaz Sharif, his sons Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz, daughter Maryam Nawaz, her husband Capt Safdar (retd) and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar within six weeks of the announcement of the judgment.
Nawaz was in London to look after his ailing wife who’s suffering from Lymphoma, and has had three surgeries so far. “I never planned to stay back in London had only come to take care of my wife, neither are we corrupt, nor have we looted money from the state treasure,†he said before departing London.
