ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been acquitted in the Avenfield reference case on Wednesday.
A two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) acquitted Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif in the Avenfield reference case on Wednesday.
The division bench of the IHC, comprising Chief Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Miangul Hasan Aurangzeb, heard Nawaz’s appeals against his sentence in the two cases.
The court acquitted Nawaz Sharif in the case after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) withdrew the charges filed against him.
Moreover, the court also dismissed the Flagship reference after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) withdrew its appeal against Nawaz’s acquittal.
At the previous hearing, in response to the court’s inquiry regarding the source of the presented facts, Nawaz’s lawyer, Amjad Pervaiz, clarified that three facts existed before the reference filing, while the remaining were subsequent.
Drawing upon the Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling in the Panama Papers case, which led to Nawaz’s disqualification, Pervaiz reminded the court of the establishment of a joint investigation team (JIT) in response to the verdict.
Nawaz’s lawyer informed the IHC that the JIT submitted a comprehensive 12-volume report to the apex court in July 2017.
Following the presentations of the involved parties, the court issued its final verdict on July 28, 2017, disqualifying Nawaz.
Justice Aurangzeb sought clarity from Pervaiz regarding the specific orders issued by the apex court. He inquired whether the SC had provided directives to the NAB chairman.
Responding to her father’s acquittal, PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz posted on X, “Entrusting one’s matters to Allah Ta’ala despite enduring oppression sets an example of how Allah can lead a person to victory in the eyes of the entire world! Grateful to God!”
جب انسان ظلم سہنے کے باوجود اپنے معملات اللّہ تعالیٰ کے سپرد کر دیتا ہے تو وہ پوری دنیا کے سامنے انسان کو کس طرح سُرخرو کرتا ہے، یہ اس کی ایک مثال ہے ! شکر الحمدُللّہ ! pic.twitter.com/O6tjw9iIJv
— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) November 29, 2023
