IHC dismisses Nawaz's petition to club judgment in corruption trial

Petition was filed against the June 5 order of the accountability court

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday dismissed a petition filed by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif requesting the court to club verdicts in all three corruption references against the Sharif family.

The IHC had reserved its verdict on June 21.

Justice Aamer Farooq of the IHC read out the judgment, stating that the plea for a joint verdict was deemed unmaintainable.



After the Avenfield reference entered the final argument phase, the case can no longer be halted to accommodate other two references, hence, the trial would proceed as scheduled.

The petition was filed against a June 5 order of the accountability court which cited technicalities for not clubbing all three references.

Subsequently, the accountability court dismissed Sharif’s request to postpone final arguments until NAB prosecutors had presented their final arguments against Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and Capt (retd) Safdar as well as Sharif’s sons, Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz, who are still absconding, in the case.

Earlier, Nawaz’s lawyer had contended that if the accountability court arrived at a decision in any of the three references separately, the judge would already have disclosed how he would proceed against the accused, who was common in all three cases.



The court, he asserted, would be obliged to stay its hand from deciding the other two references as a matter of propriety, equity and fair play.

After the IHC verdict on Friday, the accountability court could now rule in the Avenfield reference.

Defence counsels are likely to conclude their arguments in the Avenfield properties case next week.