ISLAMABAD: The Supreme of Pakistan has disqualified the Prime Minister Mian Mohammed Nawaz Sharif in Panama papers scandal during a verdict on Friday noon in Islamabad. Mian Nawaz Sharif has been barred for life running for the public office.
The historic decision was announced by a five-member bench led by the Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Asif Saeed Khosa. Justice Ejaz Afzal head of the three-member implementation bench has announced the judgement.
The decision was 5-0 and the Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan which held the sitting PM not capable of running the country in line with his obligations to the Constitution of Pakistan.
The Supreme Court order the National Accountability Bureau to file references against Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar, Chief Minister Punjab Mian Mohammed Shahbaz Sharif, Captain Rtd Safdar NAB and Prime Minister’s daughter Marayyam Nawaz within two weeks.
The decision of the Panama Papers case was announced by the original five-member bench that heard the landmark case from January this year.
The bench comprises Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, and Justice Ijazul Ahsan.
The JIT report highlighted the failure of the Sharif family to provide a money trail for its London apartments and claimed the prime minister and his children own assets beyond their known sources of income.
Strict security measures were in place in the capital’s Red Zone — where the Supreme Court is situated — with around 3,000 personnel of the Frontier Constabulary, Islamabad Police, and Punjab Rangers deployed for the purpose.
Hearing the Panama Papers case since January year, the five-judge Supreme Court bench delivered its much-anticipated order in the case on April 20.
In a 3-2 split decision, the majority judges determined that the available evidence was insufficient to disqualify the prime minister outright and directed for the formation of a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to investigate the case and collect evidence, if any, showing that “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif or any of his dependents or benamidar owns, possesses or acquired assets or any interest therein disproportionate to their known means of income”.
The JIT, formed in light of the apex court’s April 20 judgment to probe the Sharif family’s money trail, submitted its 60-day investigation report to the court on July 10.
The special implementation bench reserved its decision on July 21 after hearing arguments over the JIT report from both sides.
In his remarks at the last hearing, Justice Ejaz stated that the bench was already reviewing the matter of the prime minister’s disqualification, while Justice Ijaz remarked that the court would not back down from its decision.
The petitioners include Imran Khan, Sheikh Rasheed, and Sirajul Haq, while the respondents are the prime minister, members of his family, as well as several government-related officials and departments.
