ISLAMABAD: An acco­u­ntability court in Islam­abad acquitted Hussain and Hassan Nawaz, sons of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, on Tuesday in three corruption references. The acquittal came after the National Accoun­tability Bureau (NAB) opted not to contest their release.

Accountability Judge Nasir Javed Rana issued the ruling after the completion of arguments by Misbahul Hassan Qazi, the counsel for the Nawaz siblings, and Sohail Arif, the prosecuting officer for NAB.

Mr Qazi anchored his defence on four legal gro­u­nds, underscoring the high court’s dismissal of evidence against Mr Sharif in previous appeals related to the Avenfield Apart­ments and Al-Azizia cases. He also noted that the evidence comprised merely photocopies rather than original documents, and NAB did not challenge the acquittal of Mr Sharif, who was the principal accused in this case.

The defence counsel argued that Hussain and Hassan Nawaz had never held public office, thus no accusations within the references could substantiate any alleged criminal activities under the National Accountability Ordinance of 1999. He described the trial of the Sharif siblings as a pointless drain on the court’s valuable time.

Mr Qazi noted that Hus­sain and Hassan Nawaz had cooperated with the JIT, recording their statements, which contradicts any suggestion of their intentional avoidance. Besides, their family members also respected judicial outcomes, including their father and sister’s acceptance of previous convictions, the counsel said.

Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz Sharif were convicted in the Avenfield reference days before the 2018 general elections.

Published in Dawn, March 20th, 2024