Pakistan

Let the country run as per Constitution, pleads Nawaz

Former PM comes down hard on Supreme Court in presser post NAB court appearance

News Desk September 26, 2017

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Hours after appearing before an accountability court, deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday critcised the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) for disqualifying him from office over "non-declaration of assets" in its July 28 verdict in the Panama Papers case.

"Court suspiciously formed a joint investigation team and announced a verdict. It [court] then ordered the National Accountability Bureau to break its regulations and file reference against me,” Nawaz told reporters at Punjab House, Islamabad.

Accompanied by key Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, Nawaz said the same court had taken over the anti-graft buster and will most likely listen to the “final appeal against me”.

Claiming that charges of alleged corruption were not proved against him in the court of law, the ex-premier said he stood by the law but was still disqualified. “Such decisions are implemented but no one accepts them. I was disqualified on a false pretext of iqama [work permit] because they could not prove charges relating to the Panama Papers,” he said.

Nawaz Sharif briefly appears before NAB accountability court

On July 28, a five-member bench of the apex court had disqualified Nawaz from the PM’s office for failing to declare a salary, which he had not withdrawn as an executive of Dubai-based company, as an asset when filing his nomination papers in 2013.

In line with verdict, NAB also filed four corruption references against the ruling family and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in Islamabad’s accountability court earlier this month.

The PML-N chief said his party's victory in 2018 general elections will eliminate all other court verdicts. “I will put it plain and simple [words]; let this country run as per the Constitution and let the 200 million people make decisions of qualification and disqualification of their leaders.”

Nawaz returned to Pakistan on Monday after spending more than three weeks in London and went straight into several consultation sessions with party leaders about his future plans.

COMMENTS (7)

newsguy | 6 years ago | Reply Removing the elected leader of a country over non disclose of salary he never took seems pretty lame ... especially when you consider that this whole thing started over an investigation into offshore bank accts in Panama that nobody could tie him to. Pakistan's govt may have a reputation for corruption but lets not forget that the Judiciary might be even more corrupt/inept. When in doubt take some time and investigate Reko Diq or the other judicial pronouncements that have overruled by International courts.

Ahmer Ali | 6 years ago | Reply So strange and never understandable that when Nawaz Sharif was PM then Pakistan was running as per constitution and after his disqualification and removal from premiership now Pakistan is not running as per constitution. Isn't it Nawaz Sharif's crying over his disqualification and removal from premiership?After his disqualification and removal all matters and projects of Pakistan also not running as per constitution...