An anti-graft court on Monday sentenced former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to seven years in jail in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills corruption case while it acquitted the ex-PML(N) leader in another case known as Flagship Investments reference.
The court has ordered the confiscation of properties belonging to Sharif, one of the wealthiest Pakistanis, who along with his brother Shahbaz Sharif has ruled the country for most of the past 40 years.
The court also fined Nawaz Sharif $25 million and 1.5m pounds.
The verdict was announced almost immediately after Nawaz arrived in the courtroom. He has the option to challenge the verdict against him in the higher courts.
Accountability Judge Arshad Malik while reading out the short order said that Nawaz was indicted in the Al-Azizia reference under Section 9(a)(v) of the National Accountability Ordinance. The order added that there was no case against Nawaz in the Flagship reference.
Section 9(a)(v) says: “A holder of a public office, or any other person, is said to commit or to have committed the offence of corruption and corrupt practices if he or any of his dependents or benamidar owns, possesses, or has acquired right or title in any assets or holds irrevocable power of attorney in respect of any assets or pecuniary resources disproportionate to his known sources of income, which he cannot reasonably account for, or maintains a standard of living beyond that which is commensurate with his sources of income.”
The short order said that the burden of proof lies on Nawaz in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills case
When Nawaz arrived at the Federal Judicial Complex in Islamabad, a crowd of PML-N supporters gathered outside the premises. Some of the protestors pelted stones at police in riot gear.
Police retaliated with tear gas shelling and baton-charging the supporters.
Sharif was ousted in 2017 from the government leadership during last year of his premiership – after being elected for the third time
The court verdict in 2017 disqualifed Sharif from holding the office of the prime minister .
The court handed down convictions to Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam, and son-in-law Capt Mohammad Safdar (retd) in the Avenfield Properties reference and jailed them for 10 years, seven years and one year respectively.
In July, Pakistan had general elections with the Pakistan Tehreek e Insaaf of now Prime Minister Imran Khan emerging as the largest victorious party.
On Sept 19 this year, the Islamabad High Court granted all three bail after suspending their sentences. The National Accountability Court’s appeal against the suspension of the sentence remains pending before the Supreme Court of Pakistan
