Nawaz Sharif granted bail in all graft cases.

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Nawaz Sharif granted bail in all graft cases. — full coverage and analysis on Nai Khabar. Below we break down the key facts and what this development means.

Nawaz will land in Islamabad on October 21, says Ataullah Tarar.
The former PM will reach Dubai before travelling to Pakistan.
PML-N supremo will address a rally at Minar-e-Pakistan, Lahore.

ISLAMABAD: All legal hurdles were cleared on Thursday and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s return was allowed after he was granted bail in two corruption cases. At the same time, the trial court stayed his arrest warrant in the Toshakhana case.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking bail for Al-Azizia and Avenfield, who agreed to the charges and were granted bail until October 24.

The IHC announced the verdict, preventing authorities from arresting Nawaz Sharif upon his return to the country on Saturday (October 21).

The Supreme Court said that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had not raised any objection to the bail sought by the PML-N supreme leader in the corruption cases.

Earlier, the trial court had stayed the arrest warrant issued against him in the Toshakhana case.

A two-member IHC bench comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb heard the Nawaz’s bail petitions.

Reacting to the verdict, PML-N President and former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the IHC decision, saying his elder brother was disqualified based on a “fictitious and fabricated story”,

“The elected Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, was disqualified based on a fictitious story. He was implicated in absurd cases and subjected to mistreatment,” he wrote on X.

“Any fair hearing would have established his innocence. Bail is a fundamental right, and we welcome the IHC decision in this regard, hoping that justice will prevail, InshaAllah,” the PML-N chief added.

A day earlier, the IHC had issued a notice to NAB regarding Nawaz’s bail applications in connection with corruption charges.

NAB Rawalpindi office has appointed Rafay Maqsood as public prosecutor before the IHC.

The three-time former prime minister was found guilty of non-compliance by the IHC in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia cases after he travelled to London for treatment with the court’s permission in November 2019.

In Avenfield and Al-Azizia in 2018 As Al-Azizia reports, Nawaz was sentenced by the Court of First Instance to 10 and 7 years in prison, respectively.

His appeals against his convictions were dismissed by the IHC bench of Justices Aamer Farooq and Mohsin Akhtar Kayani for non-compliance.

Nawaz’s prison sentence in the Al-Azizia case was suspended by the Lahore High Court (LHC) in 2019 on health grounds and he was allowed to travel to London for treatment, after which he never returned.

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Nawaz’s itinerary: Dubai-Islamabad-Lahore

Azam Nazeer Tarar, head of Nawaz’s legal team, said no changes had been made to the party leader’s return plan. He said Nawaz would land at Islamabad Airport on October 21 on a chartered flight from Dubai and fly to Lahore after a short layover.

“Nawaz Sharif’s return plan is the same as that submitted to Islamabad High Court”; He added. Tarar said Nawaz would leave for Lahore after completing legal formalities and attending a consultation meeting in the federal capital.

“Nawaz Sharif to address Minar-e-Pakistan rally as scheduled”; He added. Senior PML-N leader and former finance minister Ishaq Dar also confirmed that party chief Nawaz will arrive in the federal capital on Saturday afternoon.

“Mian Nawaz Sharif will reach Islamabad on the afternoon of October 21, 2023, and then proceed to Lahore to address the Jalsa at Minar-e-Pakistan, InnshaAllah”

The elected Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, was disqualified based on a fictitious story. He was implicated in absurd cases and subjected to mistreatment. Any fair hearing would have established his innocence. Bail is a fundamental right, and we welcome the IHC…
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) October 19, 2023

Arrest warrant suspended in Toshakhana case

Ahead of the IHC hearing, the accountability court had suspended the arrest warrant against Nawaz in the Toshakhana case after the NAB prosecutor did not object.

The decision was announced soon after the judgment on Nawaz’s plea was reserved. Conciliation Court Judge Muhammad Bashir granted the former prime minister’s request and said the arrest warrant would be reinstated if the defendant failed to appear in court on October 24.

At the start of today’s hearing, Nawaz’s lawyer Qazi Misbah pleaded with Judge Bashir to suspend his client’s detention in the case as he had returned to the country and was ready to appear in court.

Nawaz, a three-time former prime minister, is due to return to the country on Saturday, ending four years of self-imposed exile in London.

During the hearing, Nawaz’s lawyer told the judge that the former prime minister wanted to appear in court at the next hearing on October 24.

When the judge asked why Nawaz did not appear in court, Misbah’s lawyer replied that his client was not feeling well, adding that his medical report had been submitted along with the application.

Meanwhile, the NAB prosecutor did not object to the charges and asked the court to suspend the arrest warrant if the accused wanted to surrender.

The prosecutor explained that the purpose of the arrest warrant was to ensure compliance with the law.

Judge Bashir also inquired about the status of other defendants, including former President Asif Ali Zardari. Lawyers told the court that there had been no arrests so far in connection with the case.

Delay in Nawaz’s arrival in Dubai Nawaz’s arrival schedule in Dubai was changed due to an important meeting in Saudi Arabia, where he arrived last week on his way back to Pakistan from London. Flight
Nawaz Sharif
was scheduled to fly to Dubai at 10:30 a.m. (PST) today, sources told Geo News. However, the PML-N leader will now reach the Gulf state late in the evening.

Convictions and court orders

It is worth noting that the Court of First Instance convicted the three-time Prime Minister in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia Steel Mills cases in 2018.

The verdict was appealed to the Supreme Court, which stayed the Court’s decision on criminal liability.

The appeal – involving an appeal against the verdicts – was pending when Nawaz went abroad for treatment and did not return to pursue the case.

The PML-N supremo – after being transferred to the Lahore High Court (LHC) in place of the IHC – was allowed to travel abroad for four weeks after his brother and party leader Shehbaz Sharif submitted an affidavit to the court in which he assured Nawaza; He will return when his health improves.

IHC rejected – in the absence of the PML-N leader – the appeals for “failure to prosecute”; instead of postponing the debates indefinitely.

While holding Nawaz to be a convicted criminal, the court noted that the appeals were rejected on technical grounds rather than on merits.