News

July 19, 2017

Bring money trail, case will end: SC

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court bench hearing the Panama case was of the view on Tuesday that the money trail of the London flats was still a mystery since it had not been provided by the Sharif family.

“We are seeking the money trail for one year; now disclose it; just one answer can wrap up the matter,” the justices asked, putting questions to the Sharif family’s counsel Khawaja Haris, who said that it was the job of the JIT to seek this from the prime minister when he appeared before it.

The trail has to be produced either in the Supreme Court or the trial court, one judge observed. “We have been waiting for the money trail and the sources of income since the day one,” Justice Ejaz Afzal said.

A three-member special implementation bench on the Panma Leaks verdict headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan and comprising Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed and Justice Ijazul Ahsen resumed hearing in the Panama Leaks case.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan remarked that when the prime minister was asked about the ownership of the London flats, he replied he did not know and perhaps Hassan owned them. The premier declined to recognize his uncle (who died forty years ago); he visits these apartments but has no knowledge about their owner; he gave an amount of Rs100 million to his party, but when he was asked about its political use, he replied in the negative.

However, Khawaja Haris clarified that Nawaz Sharif had provided Rs140 million to his party out of which Rs40 million were returned by it later and that the deceased was not an uncle of the premier.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan remarked it was wrong to say that no opportunity was given to the respondents to produce the documents. Facts were concealed; answers were not given; some said they didn’t remember; and others stated the accountant knows it, he pointed out.

The justice said the London flats were also previously investigated and unless the probe was completed, the whole matter has to be looked into; all cases were closely related to each other; a court decision is there in the Al-Towfeek case and Ishaq Dar’s statement is linked to this company.

Justice Azmat Saeed told Khawaja Haris that the lawyer has not rebutted the documents included in the JIT report. He noted that the inquiry into the London flats was also sanctioned seventeen years back and Nawaz Sharif remained out of Pakistan from 2000 to 2008.

Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan observed that the bench was to see the material and not the opinion of the JIT. He remarked that at this stage they do not want to give their opinion on any part of the JIT report. “Whether or not, the Hudaibiya Paper Mills reference is to be included in this case will have to be decided by the trial court,” he said. “All cases are heavily connected with each other.”

Justice Ijazul Ahsan observed that after reviewing the JIT report and looking at the evidence, the bench will decide whether the case should be transferred to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) or if the court will make a decision regarding the premier’s disqualification.

Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed told him that Volume-X (incorporating Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) requests to foreign states) will be made public if the lawyer insisted on its release. The bench also does not know what this volume contains. In its miscellaneous application, the prime minister sought its disclosure.

“Courts do not give judgments on contradictions; all the properties and mills, mentioned in the JIT report, are not owned by the premier; and its findings can’t be called a complete investigative report and on their basis no reference can be filed,” Khawaja Haris argued. A transparent trial could not be conducted on the basis of the report.

Since, he pleaded, Nawaz Sharif was not asked questions about certain documents, no order can be passed against him on their basis.Justice Ijazul Ahsan observed that Nawaz Sharif refused to produce documents, which should have been handed over to the JIT, if not to the court. He said that the Sharif family took the burden of proof on its head. “If you will not give proof, someone else will.”

The judge observed that the prime minister and his sons were given an opportunity of defence and to present the money trail and documents, and for the purpose the JIT summoned the premier, Maryam, Hussain, Hassan and others, but their approach was not to tell anything, not to accept anything and whatever the JIT wanted to do should do on its own.

Khawaja Haris stressed that several documents made part of the JIT findings and on which its report was based were not even shown to the respondent.

The premier was not confronted with questions about these papers to check their veracity and contents. The counsel tried to establish that the JIT deliberately kept such documents out of sight of Nawaz Sharif to draw its own premeditated conclusions to indict him in some wrongdoing.

A reading of the JIT findings also explains that a number of papers, which became the basis of certain determinations of the JIT, were not even slightly mentioned during interrogation of the respondents.Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed observed that the judges have now asked whatever was not inquired by the JIT. That’s it.

At the very outset, Khawaja Haris read out the April 20 court order and the 13 questions framed by the bench for the JIT and attempted to prove that the investigators exceeded their mandate. For example, the issue of assets beyond means did not figure among these questions, but the JIT explored it in-depth and accused the prime minister of this charge. The purpose of reading out the court order was to highlight the direction the court had set for this probe. He emphasized that the JIT had no mandate to seek reopening of cases decided by courts.

The lawyer conceded that the prime minister was only designated as chairman of board of the Dubai based FZE Capital but did not receive any salary.The court order, Khawaja Haris noted, had mentioned the gifts received by the prime minister from his son but not directed reopening of closed cases against him.

During the course of hearing, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan remarked that the court will examine all the material and then decide on the matter of disqualification of the prime minister or referring the matter to the National Accountability Bureau.

He further said that the court would not rely on the recommendations of the JIT but the documents collected by the probe body and then provided with its report.Justice Ijazul Ahsen, another member of the bench, observed that during the course of interrogation of JIT, the prime minister and his family remained non-cooperative in answering its questions and prima facie it was their policy or approach not to say anything about the properties and let the JIT find whatever it could. He said that Premier Nawaz Sharif did not give any reasonable reply to the questions posed by members of the Joint Investigation Team.

In response to one of the questions, Justice Ijaz said that the premier told the inquiry panel that he didn’t see the Qatari letters. This was a total denial and non-cooperation, Justice Ijaz added.

The formation of the JIT was aimed to provide the maximum opportunity to the Sharif family to defend their position against the allegations, leveled against them, Justice Ijaz said adding that the prime minister should have proved himself innocent against those allegations.

Arguing before the court, Khawaja Haris, counsel for Nawaz Sharif, contended that the court had put 13 questions before the JIT inquiring about the establishment of Gulf Steel Mills, its sale and on what reasons, how the money went to Jeddah, London and Qatar.

He alleged that the documents attached with the JIT findings were not authentic and verified, hence he questioned as to how the court could give its verdict on unverified documents.Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan recalled to the learned counsel that this issue was not raised in his application. Khawaja Haris, however, submitted that not only the JIT report was rejected but objections were also raised on the findings of the JIT in his application.

He said that the JIT in its report also touched those cases which were already disposed of adding that Hudabiya Papers Mills case has been decided by the learned High Court while in the Al Taufiq case, his client Mian Nawaz Sharif’s name was not there.

When Justice Ejaz Afzal asked the counsel as to whether he wants to say that the said case cannot be reopened, Khawaja Haris replied that many questions relating to Hudabiya Paper Mills did not relate to the purchase of London apartments.

Whether you mean that the assets of the respondents cannot be scrutinised and whether all those cases disposed of cannot be examined on the basis of 13 questions put before the JIT by the court, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan asked the learned counsel. The judge recalled that they have held in the judgment that if the FIA has any ample proof in this matter, it could be examined.

Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, another member of the bench, observed whatever the JIT felt appropriate, it gave its recommendations and now the court will decide and see whether the questions put by the court before the JIT were addressed or not.

The court will follow the law and the JIT recommendations were not binding on it, Justice Azmat added.The counsel for the premier contended that there was no precedent available in the law about the JIT suggestions.

To a court query regarding an offshore firm FZE, Khawaja Haris admitted before the court that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was the designated chairman of the board of Capital FZE but his son Hassan Nawaz was the owner of the said firm.

The learned counsel said that though Premier Nawaz Sharif was issued an Iqama (residence permit) by the UAE government for being the chairman of the board of Capital FZE yet he did not receive any salary.Meanwhile, the court adjourned the hearing for today (Wednesday).

 

Courtesy www.thenews.com.pk

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