ISLAMABAD – The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a review petition filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) regarding the Hudaibiya Papers Mills case against members of Sharif family.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Mushir Alam and comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel conducted the hearing of the plea.
During the hearing, Justice Isa inquired: “Why the NAB has filed the review petition with 1,299 days delay”. Rejecting the appeal, he said that the NAB could not provide a reason to reopen the case.
Earlier on December 15 last year, a three-member bench of the apex court, comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Masheer Alam and Justice Mazhar Alam Miankh, has unanimously rejected the petition of the NAB, while Justice Masheer Alam read out the order.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/supreme-court-rejects-nabs-plea-to-reopen-hudaibiya-mills-case/
The lawyer had told the court that there were spaces in LHC decision, therefore, the plea should be considered for justice. However, the apex court declared it inadmissible as it had expired.
The NAB had moved the apex court to reopen the case following revelations made by a report of Panama Papers case Joint Investigation Team (JIT) that had also recommended that the case should be reopened.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, ex-Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, his son Hamza Shehbaz and others had been made respondents in the case.
Hudaibiya Paper Mills case
The Hudaibiya Paper Mills case was allegedly used as a cover-up by the Sharif family to launder money outside the country in the 1990s through Ishaq Dar.
The NAB prosecution alleged that in 1990s, Sharif family used the company to launder 1.2 billion Pakistani rupees ($10 million) out of the country.
The case was lodged against Nawaz Sharif, his brother and former Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Hamza Shahbaz and other members over former Federal Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar’s confessional statement on April 25, 2000 before the magistrate in Lahore.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/pakistan/sc-seeks-tangible-evidence-from-nab-to-re-open-hudaibiya-paper-mills-case/
In his confessional statement on April 4, 2000, in connection with the Hudaibya Papers Mills Limited (HPML) case, Dar said that he had good relations with Masood Ahmed Qazi since 1970 and during his stay in London in early 1970s, he was staying with the Qazi family at Ilford, Essex (1970-72).
The reference was afterwards dismissed by LHC referee judge Justice Sardar Shamim on March 11, 2014 in response to a writ petition filed in 2011, claiming that Dar was pressurized to record the statement.
