NAB references: Panamagate trial enters final stage

Accountability judge summons JIT head for recording statements on March 15, 21

ISLAMABAD: The Panamagate trial against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and son in-law has entered final stages, as almost all prosecution witnesses, excluding head of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) -- have recorded their statements in three references against the Sharifs.

Subsequently, Accountability Court Judge Muhammad Bashir has summoned JIT head Wajid Zia in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)’s Avenfield Apartments reference on March 15 and in the Flagship Investment and Al-Azizia & Hill Metals references on March 21.

In a marathon hearing lasting over eight hours on Wednesday, the court recorded statements of three prosecution witnesses – Noreen Shahzadi, Waqar Ahmed and Sher Khan – and defence counsel Khawaja Haris completed the cross examination.

Shahzadi, branch manager at a private bank in Wapda Town, Lahore, recorded her statement and submitted details of Sharif and his son Hussain Nawaz’s bank accounts.

In 2009, she said, Sharif opened an account in the bank as chief executive officer of the Chaudhry Sugar Mills.

Judge Bashir observed that the worksheet of Nawaz’s son’s bank account was unreadable and directed the witness to submit a better copy.

While revealing details of Hussain’s bank account, she informed the court about several transactions in the US dollars, pound sterlings, euros and the Pakistani currency in Hussain’s bank account, saying the amount was later transferred into Nawaz Sharif’s account.

In her statement, Shahzadi said that Hussain submitted $1.3 million in his account through a cheque on June 2, 2010, and issued a cheque worth $60,500 which was transferred in Sharif’s account on July 5, 2010.

On Nov 12, 2010, she said, Hussain issued a cheque worth $90,000 to Sharif and the amount was transferred on the same date.

She added that Hussain transferred €1.1 million in Sharif’s account through five transactions between 2010 and 2012.

In addition, Shahzadi said Hussain sent a cheque worth £30,000 on December 23, 2010, adding that through another transaction, Rs2.5 million were transferred in Sharif’s account in 2010.

During cross questioning, she admitted neither she was the author of the documents which she produced nor were those prepared in her presence.

Haris also objected that financial expert – Sher Khan – could not be produced as prosecution witness.

 



NAB’s prosecutor Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi replied that Khan was engaged as financial expert to examine the transactions. Khan said that he made a comparison between the transactions of two banks and submitted a one-page comparative statement to NAB.

On Haris’ question, Khan informed the court that Irfan Naeem Mangi was working as NAB (Rawalpindi) director general when he prepared the report on net profit of the Hill Metal Establishment and the accounts of Sharif and his son Hussain.

Mangi is one of the six members of the JIT that prepared and submitted a report JIT report before the Supreme Court on July 10, 2017.

The Supreme Court had directed NAB to file references against the Sharif family in line with the JIT report.

The court will resume hearing of the Avenfield Apartments reference on March 15 (today) wherein Wajid Zia would continue recording his statement.

On previous hearing, a defence counsel Amjad Pervaiz had challenged the admissibility of the JIT’s report into the Panama papers scandal as evidence.

Judge Bashir had not allowed the prosecution to produce the entire JIT report as evidence saying that the court would decide if summaries, opinions and conclusions in JIT report and statements of accused person could be admissible or not once Zia completes his narration of the events.

Pervaiz had maintained that none of the JIT reports could be exhibited by the witness because it was an investigation report which could not be exhibited as evidence.

Meanwhile, talking to the media in the courtroom before the hearing, Sharif said that “The general elections will be held on time,” rejecting the impression that the upcoming elections would somehow be managed.

Answering a question, Sharif said, “Gone are the days when the elections could be managed,” adding, “It is not possible to engineer the general elections now.”

He said a caretaker government could not go beyond its constitutional.

While referring to the coalition of the Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in the recent Senate elections, Sharif said “those from Bani Gala and Karachi have bowed down in Sanjrani’s court”, as if there was a GPS in Sanjrani House and every convoy stopped and bowed there.