ISLAMABAD: Two UK-based prosecution witnesses, including a nephew of an additional director general of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), have been allowed to testify through a video link in a supplementary reference against ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif related to Avenfield apartments.

Accountability Court Judge Mohammad Bashir on Friday accepted an application filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) seeking testimony of the owner of UK-based Quist Solicitors, Akhtar Raja, and principal at the Radley Forensic Document Laboratory, Robert W. Radley, via video link.

Mr Radley and Mr Raja, who is nephew of FIA additional DG Wajid Zia, the head of the Joint Investigation Team that had investigated the Sharif family, will record their statements through video link at the Pakistan High Commission in London. The judge also issued a directive for the installation of necessary equipment in this regard.

The two witnesses had earlier refused to appear in person before the accountability court, citing security reasons and other professional commitments.

NAB Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi said that the witnesses were willing to record their statements through video link, but could not come to Pakistan. He said that the personal appearance of the witnesses would cause inconvenience and delay. Besides, he added, the authorities would have to bear heavy expense for their travel and stay in Pakistan.

He said the witnesses could not be compelled to come to Pakistan because there was no mutual agreement between the United Kingdom and Pakistan in this regard. The prosecutor also cited earlier precedents where the witnesses were allowed to testify through video link.

The counsel for the Sharif family, Amjad Pervaiz, however, said that the apex court had allowed testimony through a commission. He argued that a reciprocal arrangement did exist between the two countries and read out its details from the gazette published in 1960 and cited by the apex court in a judgement in 1999.

He explained that the witness had to be made subject to a court’s jurisdiction for his statement. As per the document, the Supreme Court Judicature, London, could examine the witness, he said, adding that by way of issuing commission, the court and prosecutor could examine the witness in the highest court of England.

In addition, Mr Pervaiz said Mr Radley had in his declaration about his terms and conditions before the JIT accepted that he could be required to attend the court for cross-examination, but there was no mention of video link. He said the family and antiterrorism laws had provision for video link, but the NAB Ordinance was silence on this.

Following the arguments, the court reserved its verdict for a few hours and later pronounced it by granting the NAB application.

Mr Radley, being a forensic examiner, had earlier stated that the font used in the trust deeds of two companies was Calibri which was not commercially available before Jan 31, 2007, while the documents had been prepared and signed on an earlier date.

Mr Zia hired the firm of his nephew for the forensic audit of the documents related to the ownership of London properties. The audit concluded that the documents presented by Maryam Nawaz were forged because at the time of the preparation of the trust deed, Calibri font was not commercially available.

In a two-page letter to NAB that the latter submitted to the accountability court, Mr Raja stated that he as well as forensic expert Radley due to their other professional commitments and risk to their life were unable to give evidence in person at any hearing.

Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2018