IHC suspends sentences of Nawaz, Maryam and Safdar in Aevenfiled

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday suspended the sentences of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and Captain (r) Safdar in the Avenfield reference. A two-judge bench comprising Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb heard the petitions filed by former premier Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Capt (retd) Safdar challenging the Avenfield verdict against them. Justice Minallah read the judgment and ordered the release of Nawaz Sharif, Maryam and Cap Safdar. However, the court ordered the accused to submit surety bonds worth Rs 0.5 million each. Earlier today, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor Akram Qureshi concluded his arguments in the case. During Tuesday's hearing, the bench had directed Qureshi to conclude his arguments within 30 minutes and said that a verdict will be announced today even if arguments are not concluded. After the NAB prosecutor concluded his arguments, Nawaz's counsel, Khawaja Harris, presented brief arguments following which the court reserved its judgment. A large number of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, including Shehbaz Sharif, Pervaiz Rashid and Khurram Dastgir, are present in the courtroom for the hearing. The petitions were filed by the Sharif family against their conviction in the Avenfield reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau in line with the Panama papers case verdict. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was sentenced to 10 years in jail, his daughter Maryam was sentenced to seven years while son-in-law Captain (r) Safdar was sentenced to one year in prison. They all were imprisoned in the Adiala jail.