Sharjeel Memon and the Sharif family – a case of double standards

NAB has treated these two high-profile cases very differently

ISLAMABAD: The sensational media coverage former provincial information minister and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Sharjeel Inam Memon receives every time he lands at an airport or steps foot in court, and his alleged unfair treatment at the hands of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), is reminiscent of the three witches in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. “Fair is foul and foul is fair… Hover through the fog and filthy air,” they chanted in the play, which portrayed the political realities of the times. However, the line is still relevant in today’s political maneuvering in Sindh as the proceedings of his case progress, exposing many ‘fair and foul’ standards in the unflattering comparison between Memon’s and the Sharif family’s cases.

Ever since the country watched the dramatic manner in which he was taken into custody minutes after his arrival from London at the Islamabad airport on their television screens eight months ago, we have seen the double standards with which Memon and ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family were met when arriving at the same destination.

This continued when he was arrested from the premises of the Sindh High Court two months ago, blatantly violating the sanctity of the court. Later, NAB denied that the arrest even took place at the court. Its ‘memo of arrest and personal search’ stated that he was arrested on Sharae Iraq, near the passport office. Could anyone be expected to accept this official statement in the age of electronic media?



Along with Memon, 11 other senior bureaucrats and businessmen were also arrested for whom warrants of arrest have still not been issued. Under what law have they been arrested? Given the vitiated political times and the highly sensitive nature of its mandate, NAB should have gone the extra mile to ensure that its actions were visibly impartial, if only to establish and further fortify its own credibility.

Before arriving in the country, Memon had remained abroad for many months on medical grounds. At the time, NAB had filed cases against him. He could have easily stayed away like so many others facing criminal charges but he opted to return and face the cases. Is he being punished for returning to Pakistan and facing the charges against him with a demand of fair trial?

When the Sindh Assembly repealed the NAB Ordinance, Memon wrote an official letter to the chief minister, requesting that his case not be transferred to the provincial anti-corruption department because he wanted to continue his cases with the NAB courts so no one could say he was taking advantage of the new law. Why, even then, are he and others booked in the same case not being provided the fair chance to defend themselves?

Another instance illustrating the double standards in his case is when his name was placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) in December 2015 when he was abroad. It was on the list for four months, well before any reference was filed by NAB against him or any call-up notice issued.



Memon has been maintaining that the references against him were filed by NAB with undue haste and without obtaining his statement or providing him the opportunity of a hearing. He obtained bail before arrest from the Islamabad High Court and opted to land in Islamabad instead of Karachi to face the courts and clear his name. NAB officials were waiting for him on the tarmac and accosted him as he disembarked from the plane. He was publicly humiliated, despite having obtained bail before arrest, and taken to the NAB headquarters. Later that night he was released after his lawyers arrived with his bail documents.

Conversely, when Nawaz’s son-in-law, Captain Safdar, landed at the Islamabad airport, the same NAB officials were not even permitted to enter the airport premises despite possessing warrants for his arrest. He had not obtained bail. Do these scenes not speak volumes about the double standards employed by the country’s accountability watchdog?

Memon has been vocal in his opposition of this discrimination. For the Sharif family, the Rawalpindi Accountability Court issues summons in case of absences and bailable warrants in the event of two absences. However, in Memon’s case a non-bailable warrant was issued straight away. This is another glaring example of double standards.



As per NAB law, why were Nawaz and his family treated differently? Why has he been denied the summons and bail on personal cognisance? Why were the Sharifs not given the same treatment that Memon was meted out upon his arrival in Pakistan?

Amid all the contrasts, NAB needs to ensure a fair not foul trial, which is a basic right of any citizen, otherwise Shakespeare’s fiction may become our reality.

The writer is an Islamabad-based freelance contributor. He can be reached at [e-mail]