Pakistan’s former prime minister and graft convict Nawaz Sharif. File
| Photo Credit: AFP
A Pakistani high court on Tuesday adjourned till November 27 the hearing of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif‘s petitions to revive appeals against his conviction in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia corruption cases as he prepares to lead his party in the general elections.
A two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, took up the appeals for hearing and heard Sharif’s counsel Azam Tarar and the legal team of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Also Read | Another honeymoon: On the return of Nawaz Sharif to Pakistan
The bench then adjourned the hearing until Monday and asked Tarar to present his arguments at the next hearing.
The 73-year-old three-time prime minister returned to Pakistan on October 21 after about four years of self-imposed exile in London and was present in the court at the time of hearing. He is expected to lead the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party in the general elections set to be held on February 8 next year.
Mr. Sharif arrived in court amid tight security. He was accompanied by his brother, ex-premier Shehbaz Sharif, and an entourage comprising senior PML-N leaders.
The PML-N supremo was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in jail by an accountability court in the Avenfiled case in July 2018 for owning illegal properties in London.
His daughter, Maryam Nawaz, was also sentenced to seven years in jail in the case but was acquitted in September 2022 along with her husband, Muhammad Safdar.
The former premier was also convicted in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills corruption case and sentenced to seven years in jail in December 2018.
He challenged the sentence, but the appeal process was halted as he was away in London.
He was allowed to go to London in November 2019 on medical grounds, and returned about four years later in October.
The IHC declared him a proclaimed offender in both cases in December 2020.
The former premier returned last month from London after about four years and approached the IHC to restore his appeals, which was duly done.