Hussain Nawaz appears before probe team, records statement

islamabad — Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ’s son Hussain Nawaz on Sunday visited the National Judicial Academy to appear before a Supreme Court-appointed joint investigation team (JIT) investigating his family’s business dealings abroad, Dawn reported online.

Hussain Nawaz said before his hearing that he was going to report to the investigation team along with his lawyer and did not wish to discuss the case with media.

He said he had been given 24 hours to appear before the JIT and claimed he had not received any questionnaire from the investigating team before he received the summons.

Hussain will also be appearing before the Supreme Court on Monday to voice his concerns about two members of the JIT. A three-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, will hear his reservations.

An application submitted earlier by the prime minister’s son stated that he had reservations regarding the inclusion of Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan’s Bilal Rasool and State Bank’s Amer Aziz in the JIT.

Sources told Dawn that Hussain in his application requested that, for the sake of propriety, the two officers should recuse themselves from the JIT to ensure an ‘upright and unbiased’ investigation into the allegations against the ruling family.

According to the source, one of the JIT members is considered a close friend of former president retired Gen Pervez Musharraf. The other is said to be a relative of former Punjab governor Mian Azhar, a founding member of the Pakistan Muslim League and currently aligned with the Pakistan Tehreeki-Insaaf (PTI).

Both PTI and Musharraf are considered arch rivals of the PML-N, which is headed by Hussain’s father.

The JIT had submitted an initial report before the Supreme Court on May 22. After reviewing the report, the contents of which were not made public, the three-member special bench of the apex court, formed to monitor the JIT’s proceedings, had ordered Wajid Zia, head of the JIT, to take the stand.

Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan, the head of the bench, had warned Zia that the tasks assigned to the JIT should be completed within the 60-day timeframe provided to the team.