ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court has allowed the presence of the counsel for ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law retired Captain Mohammad Safdar at the Pakistani High Commission in London during the testimony of two prosecution witnesses in the Avenfield Properties reference.

Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb of the IHC heard the identical petitions filed by Mr Sharif and his daughter on Thursday.

The Sharif family has challenged the order of an accountability court which exempted personal appearance of two prosecution witnesses — Akhtar Raja, Principal Quist Solicitor, and Robert M. Radley — and allowed them to testify through video link from the UK.

Though the petitioners had requested the court to set aside the order of the accountability court as an alternative remedy, Mr Sharif and his daughter were seeking presence of their counsel in the Pakistan High Commission in London to examine the witnesses.

Mr Raja is a nephew of Wajid Zia, the additional director general of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) who headed the Supreme Court-appointed joint investigation team (JIT) which had recommended filing of references against Mr Sharif and former finance minister Ishaq Dar. The Supreme Court, on the recommendation of the JIT, directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to file three references against Mr Sharif and his children and one against Mr Dar.

The bench said that the counsel and representative should be allowed during the examination of witnesses — Radley, the Principal at the Radley Forensic Document Laboratory, and Akhtar Raja. “Let the examination take place in the presence of the counsel and representative,” Justice Minallah remarked.

The bench, however, observed that the defence counsel should not seek adjournment on the date fixed by the trial court for recording of statements after NAB prosecutor Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi termed the petitions as delaying tactics.

Maryam and her spouse Safdar had filed the petition on Wednesday. Mr Sharif filed the petition on Thursday which was fixed for the same day hearing.

The court heard both the petitions together. Since NAB’s prosecutor was present in the court when the petitions were taken up, he was asked to argue, which he did.

The couple, through their counsel, Amjad Pervaiz, challenged the trial court’s order of Feb 2 before the IHC.

Judge Muhammad Bashir had allowed NAB to record the statement of the witnesses through video link at the High Commission in London.

NAB had said that both the witnesses are in the United Kingdom and could not come to Pakistan due to security reasons and “heavy engagements”.

Robert Radley, being a forensic examiner, had opined that the font used in trust deeds of two companies was Calibri which was not commercially available before January 2007 while the documents were prepared and signed on an earlier date.

During the course of arguments, counsel for Mr Sharif Saad Hashmi and Maryam’s counsel Amjad Pervez said that the accountability court did not keep in mind the possibility of manipulation of witnesses during video link testimony as it allowed examination of the witnesses through video link in the high commission without any representation of either of the parties.

He added that examination of witnesses through video link while sitting abroad would cause prejudice to the petitioners and the atmosphere would be conducive for committing perjury with impunity as the witnesses would not be subject to the jurisdiction of any court of law.

The petitioners requested the court to set aside the order of the accountability court.

As an alternative the petition further requested that the impugned order may kindly be modified with direction for adequate representation of the petitioners during the examination of the witnesses at the high commission in London.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2018