A two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court adjourned hearing in Nawaz Sharif’s appeal in the Al-Aziziya and Avenfield cases on Monday. The case will now be heard on November 29.
The bench includes Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Gul Hassan Aurangzeb.
Nawaz’s lawyer Amjad Pervaiz began his arguments in the appeal on Monday. The bench had instructed him to stick to the Avenfield case for the time being. Pervaiz had told the court that he would need a total of four to six hours to complete his arguments.
Pervaiz told the court that the onus of proving that Maryam and her brothers were beneficial owners of the said properties lay on the prosecution. He added that the charge had been framed incorrectly in the case.
Justice Aamer Farooq remarked that neither the charge was framed correctly nor was National Accountability Bureau aware of what the evidence in the case was.
Nawaz’s lawyer also referred to the judgement in the Panama Papers case and how the Joint Investigation Team had been set up for the case.
He added that Nawaz had been disqualified after the JIT report was submitted in the court. Justice Aurangzeb asked if any instructions had been given to NAB, to which Pervaiz said that the Bureau was told to file references against Nawaz.
The famed volume 10 of the JIT report was also mentioned in court when Pervaiz said that no documents from the volume were given to the petitioners.
The lawyer said that NAB had not done any independent investigation and had merely relied on the JIT report in the case. The sole witness was related to the calibri font and had no link to Nawaz, the lawyer said.
However, the National Accountability Bureau’s lawyer told the court that he would only need half an hour for his arguments.
PMLN leader Nawaz Sharif reached Minister Enclave, Islamabad from Jati Umra, Lahore, where he stayed for some time at Ishaq Dar’s residence and consulted lawyers.
He also chaired a meeting of party leaders.
Nawaz has already received sentences in the two cases. However, the IHC had agreed to restore his bails in the cases on October 26, days after he returned to the country after a four-year exile.
This story is being updated.
