Sharifs meet lawyers in jail

No AC, proper bedding or clean washroom, the duo spend their first day in Adiala

ISLAMABAD: Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s legal team was allowed to meet him briefly, a day after he was shifted to the Adiala jail after being arrested on arrival in Lahore.

Sources told The Express Tribune, the legal team was only allowed to meet the deposed premier for five minutes. They further said that lawyers Saad Hashmi and Zafar Khan went to Sharif to attain a power of attorney for filing an appeal in the Islamabad High Court on Monday. A police official was also present in the room in the jail during the legal teams’ meeting, sources also said.

It was also learnt that no bed or AC was provided to Sharif in jail on the first night while his bed was a lonely mattress on the floor, and the washroom was in "despicable condition".



However, the legal team was prohibited from meeting Maryam Nawaz and only Amjad Parvez, her legal counsel, was allowed to visit her to obtain her signature on the document.

Presently Sharifs’ counsel Khawaja Haris is in Lahore and will arrive in Islamabad today (Sunday) for contesting the case before the IHC. It was learnt that an appeal against the Avenfield judgment will also be filed in the apex court on Monday. It is expected that the case will be taken up by IHC division bench comprising by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani and Justice Mian Gul Hassan next week.

Interestingly, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, who is the senior-most judge, has not been included as a member of the IHC division bench.  A member of the legal team informed that appeal will be filed against the convictions of both Sharif and his daughter on Monday, adding that a writ petition will be filed against the award of their sentence as well.



Meanwhile, Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) executive member Azam Nazeer Tarar has expressed serious concerns as no special class cell was given to Sharif in the jail. He expected that the government would provide him with 'B' class facilities. Tarar also informed that a delegation of PBC will visit Adiala jail as 'observers' next week. He wondered why a thrice-elected PM is being treated like this while Pervez Musharraf, a man who had abrogated the constitution, is living abroad freely.



Meanwhile, a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader reveals that it was Maryam, who had convinced her father to return to Pakistan and face jail, adding that she is very bold in her decisions. Likewise, the law ministry’s notification surfaced last night specifying Adiala jail to be the place where the accountability court shall sit for the trial of the remaining references against Sharif and others.

However, the Sharif family has also expressed serious concern over the notification for conducting the trial inside the jail.  A lawyer from the legal team stated that they will also challenge this notification, similarly, the team will also raise the issue before the IHC regarding the transfer of cases to another judge after judgment in the reference was issued.

Meanwhile, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif along with other family members met Sharif in jail on Friday night.