Nawaz Sharif, Maryam placed on ECL

ISLAMABAD - The interior ministry has placed the names of former premier Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz on Exit Control List (ECL), effectively barring them from any offshore tour.

The approval to enforce travel restrictions on members of the former ruling family was given by the secretary interior on a plea forwarded by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Tuesday.

The development came after the convicts in the Avenfield reference filed by the anti-graft watchdog were sentenced to imprisonment by the accountability court judge, Muhammad Bashir.

The former premier and his daughter are currently in London to tend to cancer suffering Kulsoom Nawaz who is undergoing treatment at the Harley Street Clinic.

The supreme leader of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz had announced returning back to Pakistan this Friday for which the party loyalists have been directed to assemble at the Lahore airport.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/sharifs-guilty-or-innocent-pakistan-awaits-accountability-courts-verdict-in-avenfield-case-today/

On the other hand, the accountability watchdog has sought a helicopter to shift the convicted politicians directly to the Adiala jail from the airport.

In the Avenfield reference verdict, Nawaz Sharif has been handed a 10-year imprisonment, Maryam Nawaz has been awarded a 7-year imprisonment; Captain (r) Safdar has been directed to spend a year behind bars.

The Al-Azizia and Flagship investment is still pending before the accountability court for which the apex court has granted six weeks to wrap up the proceedings.