SC to hear NAB plea challenging suspension of Sharifs’ jail term tomorrow

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The Supreme Court (SC) will hear the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) plea challenging the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) verdict regarding suspension of Sharif family’s jail sentence Wednesday (tomorrow). According to details garnered, Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar has constituted a bench to hear the NAB’s appeal tomorrow. A day earlier, the NAB challenged the Islamabad High Court’s verdict of suspending sentences to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, daughter Maryam Nawaz and her husband Capt (r) Safdar in the Supreme Court. In the petition, the probe body stated that the high court did not correctly examine the evidence in the case. The NAB petitioned that the apex court should declare the IHC’s September 19 decision as null and void. On Sept 19, the IHC had suspended sentences of the three in the Avenfield corruption reference and ordered their release. Earlier a month, Justice Minallah read the judgment and suspended the sentences handed to the three by accountability court judge Mohammad Bashir on July 6. Nawaz, Maryam and Capt (retd) Safdar were sentenced to 11 years, eight years and one year, respectively, in prison in the Avenfield properties reference. Ordering their release, the two-judge bench directed the former premier, his daughter and son-in-law to submit bail bonds worth Rs0.5 million each. On July 6, an accountability court had handed Nawaz Sharif 10 years as jail time for owning assets beyond income and 1 year for not cooperating with NAB in the Avenfield properties corruption reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). His daughter Maryam Nawaz was given 7 years for abetment, and her husband Captain (retd) Safdar was given 1 year for non-cooperation with the anti-graft authority.