Pak apex court hands major setback to Nawaz Sharif’s return to politics
Islamabad, Sep 15: In a landmark ruling, Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday scrapped the recent amendments to the country’s anti-graft laws and restored corruption cases against public office holders, including former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who was one of the major beneficiaries of the changes.
The apex court was announcing its reserved decision on jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s plea filed last year, challenging the amendments made to the accountability laws by the then government led by former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif.
Nawaz Sharif, 73, is scheduled to return to Pakistan on October 21 from London, ending his four-year-long self-exile.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah issued a reserved judgment by a 2-1 majority. Justice Shah disagreed with the majority verdict.
Annulling the changes by the government headed by Shehbaz Sharif, the court declared that amendments, like limiting the jurisdiction of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the anti-corruption watchdog, to the cases involving over Rs 500 million, were against the Constitution.
It restored corruption cases against public officeholders.
The court directed that the cases withdrawn after NAB’s jurisdiction was limited to investigating cases below Rs 500 million be fixed for hearing in accountability courts.
It also declared the verdicts issued by the accountability courts null and void in light of the amendments made to the laws and directed the NAB to send the record to the relevant courts within seven days.
The restoration of the old law may have implications of varying levels for several politicians, including former president Asif Ali Zardari and ex-premiers Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz Sharif, Yusuf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervez Ashraf and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.
They all benefited under the new law as the trial of those accused with less than Rs 500 million of alleged corruption was stopped. (PTI)