Panama Papers: Larger bench sought to hear pleas against PM

PM accused of funnelling public money to off-shore companies

LAHORE: Advocate Gohar Nawaz Sindhu, representing the Pakistan Tehrek-i-Insaf, moved an application before Lahore High Court on Tuesday requesting the court to constitute a larger bench to hear petitions regarding investigation in the Panama Papers case.

Sindhu and several others had filed identical petitions requesting the court to initiate proceedings against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for his alleged involvement in establishing offshore companies and concealing certain facts from the public.

The petitioners have named Sharif, his sons Hussain Nawaz and Hassan Nawaz, his daughter Maryam Nawaz, former interior minister Rehman Malik, the Election Commission of Pakistan, the National Accountability Bureau and the Federal Investigation Agency respondents.

They said that several political leaders, including the prime minister, had been transferring public money out of Pakistan and establishing offshore companies. They said public money had been invested in offshore companies and it had not been taken abroad through legal means.

Sindhu stressed that the politicians had concealed facts regarding their off-shore companies from the public and had not disclosed it while filing nomination papers for parliament. He said Hussain Nawaz had acknowledged the existence of the companies. Therefore, the PM should be declared disqualified.

He requested the LHC to order the NAB to hold an inquiry in the Panama Papers case and fix responsibility for all the violations of law. He also requested the court to declare Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and other politicians involved disqualified. He said that the Election Commission of Pakistan should be directed to start an inquiry against Nawaz Sharif for concealing facts from the public while submitting nomination papers. He requested that the prime minister’s sons and his daughter also be barred from contesting elections.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 4^th, 2016.