Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s elder son Hussain Nawaz today appeared for the sixth time before a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the high-profile Panamagate graft case against his family. Hussain Nawaz arrived at the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA) and was questioned by the JIT set up by the Supreme Court.
As the JIT deadline of July 10 approaches, two members of the six-member JIT today left for Qatar to record the statement of prince Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al- Thani. Irfan Naeem Mangi from the National Accountability Bureau and Brigardier Kamran Khurshid from Military Intelligence departed for Doha early this morning on Qatar Airways flight, the Dawn reported.
The Qatari prince had written two letters to Supreme Court in which he said that late Muhammad Shairf, father of Nawaz Sharif, had invested 12 million dirham in the real estate business of royal family. In its judgement of April 20 in the Panama Papers case, the Supreme Court had constituted a JIT and empowered it to summon the prime minister, his sons and any other person necessary, to investigate allegations of money-laundering, through which the four apartments in London’s posh Park Lane area were purchased.
According to letters by the Qatari royal, the money invested by late Sharif was returned to the family with profits. Sharifs have maintained that the same money was used to buy London property. On May 5, the Supreme Court set up a high-level six- member JIT to probe Sharif and his sons’ alleged corruption in the Panama Papers case. It has already questioned Sharif and several others of his family, including his sons — Hussain and Hasan–over the family’s alleged improper business dealings. Sharif’s daughter Maryam Nawaz will appear tomorrow before the JIT for the first time.
Sharif has denied any wrongdoing and said the property was purchased through the money his late father had invested in the Gulf states. However, opposition parties allege that the property was bought through illegal money which Sharif got in 1990’s when he served twice as prime minister. The JIT is expected to complete its probe by July 10 and submit a report to the apex Court, which will decide fate of Sharif.
