Money-laundering charge: LHC larger bench to hear case against Premier Nawaz

Barrister Iqbal Jafri filed a petition in 1991 against PM

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court chief justice Manzoor Ahmed Malik has formed a five-member larger bench to take up the matter of money laundering case against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The bench will be headed by justice Farrukh Irfan Khan and other members will include justice Muhammad Qasim, justice Ayesha A Malik, justice Faisal Zaman and justice Mirza Waqas Raoof.

The petition was filed by Barrister Javed Iqbal Jafri in 1991. He alleged in the plea that PM Nawaz was involved in money laundering out of the country after plundering the national exchequer. Jafri prayed the court to hold investigation and bring back the money plundered by the prime minister.

He also pleaded the court to take action against Premier Nawaz for alleged money laundering and declare him as disqualified from contesting any elections.

Earlier on October 21, 2014 a division bench, headed by justice Sayed Mansoor Ali Shah, had referred the case to the chief justice for constituting a larger bench to deal with the case.

However, the larger bench could not be formed and during the last week, the case again was fixed before a single bench of justice Ayesha A Malik who again referred the case back to the registrar’s office for fixing it before a larger bench.

The petitioner alleged that PM Nawaz shifted public money abroad and was involved in horse-trading. “He was ineligible to contest the elections,” he argued.

Barrister Javed said that the main petition against the money laundering was filed back in 1991 and a larger bench was constituted but a five-member bench heard the case only once.

Since then, the petition had not been decided yet, he told the bench. Upon which, the division bench declined hearing of the petition and sent it to the chief justice requesting him to constitute a larger bench. The larger bench would start proceedings on the petition from May 8.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 7^th, 2015.