Nawaz Sharif submits written reply in Flagship reference

ISLAMABAD – Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday submitted a written reply of 136 questions asked by an accountability court in Flagship reference.

Accountability court judge Arshad Malik heard one of the references filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the former premier and his family members.

Sharif also appeared before the court where his counsel, Khawaja Harris, handed over the reply to the court staff in a USB.

During the hearing, the judge asked, “When you [Nawaz Sharif] landed in trouble, you did not asked your sons to give some documents in the case”.

He further asked about the total investment in the Flagship, and why a case had been filed against Nawaz Sharif.

Sharif replied, “My children sold the flats after constructing them and there was a separate company for every flat”.

He further added that references against him were filed on the basis of what he termed a one-sided report prepared by the Panamagate joint investigation team (JIT).

“The assets were owned by Hussain Nawaz but the JIT falsely presented me as the owner,” he said, adding that JIT head Wajid Zia and NAB’s investigation officer Kamran tried to frame him in the fake cases.

He asserted that no any prosecution witness except Zia and Kamran had given statement against him. He added that the allegation could not be proved against him.

The Cases

As many as three references have been filed against the former premier in line with the directives of the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case verdict – a decision that ousted Nawaz Sharif from the PM House in July last year.

The accountability court judge Muhammad Bashir had sentenced the elder Sharif to ten years in the Avenfield reference. However, the conviction was suspended by a two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court.

NAB has moved the Supreme Court against the decision of the Islamabad High Court which will hear the case on December 12.

Besides Sharif, Maryam Nawaz was sentenced to 7 years and Captain Safdar was sentenced to one year in prison in the Avenfield reference which pertains to the pricey flats of the former ruling family.