<\/p>\n
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday restored PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif appeals against his conviction in the Avenfield Apartments and Al-Azizia references.<\/p>\n
The verdict, which was reserved earlier today, was announced by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb.<\/p>\n
The bench issued the verdict while hearing Nawaz\u2019s pleas seeking protective bail in the cases and for restoring his appeals against his conviction.<\/p>\n
In July 2018, Nawaz was handed 10 years in jail<\/a> in the Avenfield properties corruption reference for owning assets beyond known income and one year for not cooperating with the NAB, which was to be served concurrently.<\/p>\n The Al-Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference pertains to the case in which he was sentenced to seven years in jail<\/a> on Dec 24, 2018 and then taken to Rawalpindi\u2019s Adiala Jail, from where he was shifted<\/a> to Lahore\u2019s Kot Lakhpat jail next day. He was also fined Rs1.5 billion and US$25 million in the case.<\/p>\n Nawaz was released<\/a> from jail in March 2019, following which he left for London in November 2019 after the LHC allowed him to do so on medical grounds. The IHC had declared him a proclaimed offender in both cases in December 2020.<\/p>\n Nawaz then remained in London for nearly four years and only returned to the country earlier this month. The PML-N leader was granted protective bail in both the cases after arriving back in Pakistan. On Monday, the IHC had extended<\/a> Nawaz\u2019s protective bail in both cases till Oct 26 (today).<\/p>\n During today\u2019s proceedings, Nawaz appeared before the court alongside his brother Shehbaz and other party leaders.<\/p>\n At the outset of the hearing, NAB Prosecutor General Ehtesham Qadir Shah stated that the court had directed the watchdog\u2019s chairman to provide an opinion on the bail pleas. He informed the court, \u201cWe had an extensive discussion regarding the petitions.\u201d<\/p>\n Focusing on the Avenfield case first, Shah said that the reference could potentially be withdrawn if the verdict had not been announced. He also emphasised that there was a possibility of withdrawing the reference during an ongoing trial.<\/p>\n \u201cAccording to Pakistani laws, if an appeal is accepted against a decision, the reference cannot be withdrawn,\u201d he said. \u201cIf an appeal is submitted, a decision must be reached, and it cannot be dismissed based on non-compliance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Shah further said that the reference had been filed in accordance with the Supreme Court\u2019s order and had received approval from the NAB chairman.<\/p>\n