ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday appeared before the accountability court for the Al-Azizia Steel Mills and Flagship Investment reference cases.
The reference cases filed by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against Nawaz Sharif in Al-Azizia Steel Mills case are being heard by Justice Mohammad Bashir. The court will record statements of five witnesses of prosecution, later to be cross-examined by Nawaz’s counsel Khawaja Harris.
In the case proceedings held on March 7, prosecution witness former head of Joint Investigation Team (JIT) of Panama Papers case Wajid Zia had recorded his statement. Zia had submitted his record in three boxes and appealed from the court to add the JIT report as part of the hearings.
Maryam Nawaz and Captain (r) Safdar’s counsel Amjad Pervaiz had opposed the plea, arguing that no law permitted inclusion of suggestions from investigation reports. Thus the court dismissed Zia’s appeal of addition of JIT report as part of the record.
Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were exempted from court appearance in the previous hearing, owing to Nawaz’s ill health.
The reference cases’ verdict was to be produced within a six-month duration ending on March 13, but was extended for another two months by a three-member bench of Supreme Court (SC) as per request of the accountability court.
