Court suspends Sharif’s sentence for 8 weeks
PLEA GRANTED IN VIEW OF FORMER PM’S FAILING HEALTH
■ Associate Editor — Online
Three-time former Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif has been barred from leaving the country to seek medical treatment. However, Islamabad High Court yesterday confirmed his bail suspending his jail term for eight weeks on medical grounds.
Nawaz Sharif will have to go back to the jail after eight weeks to resume his seven-year sentence in a corruption case unless his bail is extended. However, his doctors told the court that “Sharif’s condition is serious”.
A two-member judicial bench comprising Justice Amir Farooq and Mohsin Akhtar Kayani announced the verdict on the plea filed by former chief minister of Punjab Shehbaz Sharif seeking the suspension of his brother’s sentence in the case.
In its verdict, the high court ordered that if Sharif’s condition does not improve in eight weeks, then the Punjab provincial government should be approached for a bail extension.
The court asked Nawaz Sharif to submit two bail bonds worth Rs2 million (Dh47,216). The court, in the same case, had granted the former premier bail on Saturday,Geo TV reported.
According to Nawaz’s personal physician, Dr Adnan Khan, the former prime minister is in a critical condition, suffering from ‘Thrombocytopenia Pakistan’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is “critically unwell”, his doctor said on Tuesday, days after the three-time leader now serving a prison sentence for corruption suffered a minor heart attack.
Sharif is currently in hospital in the eastern city of Lahore after receiving “indefinite” bail on medical grounds in one of his graft convictions. His name remains on a stop list, meaning that he must remain in the country for the time being.
“Former PM #NawazSharif, critically unwell, is fighting the battle for his health & life,” his personal physician, Adnan Khan, tweeted yesterday. In addition to the minor heart-attack, Sharif has a low platelet count, both of which are being further complicated by “deteriorating kidney functions” Adnan added.
He said poor blood sugar and blood pressure control were taking their toll. (low platelet count), heart and kidney complications.
During the hearing, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar appeared before the court and presented a report regarding the health of the former prime minister.
Buzdar told the court that the former premier trusted the medical care being provided to him. He added that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supreme leader was under treatment at the hospital and that they would take care of him.
Low platelet count
Dr Khan told the court that a normal person’s blood platelets are more than 100,000, but Nawaz’s platelets were very low, which is why a medical board of highly qualified doctors was formed to review his health.
He added that the former prime minister was fighting for his life because when the doctors gave him prescriptions for low platelets he got a heart attack. After hearing the doctor’s opinion, Nawaz’s lawyer Khawaja Harris told the court that due to the former premier’s angina, doctors cannot treat all his ailments.
Sentence to continue
The lawyer said if they want to ensure that Nawaz completes his sentence then he should be allowed to get treatment from the doctors of his choice. He added that if the former prime minister’s health improves then he can continue serving his sentence.
Meanwhile, Additional Prosecutor General for National Accountability Bureau, Jahanzaib Bharwana, said that the Supreme Court suspended Nawaz’s sentence for eight weeks on health grounds.