SC rejects NAB’s appeal against suspension of Sharif’s sentence

islamabad — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) challenging suspension of jail sentences awarded to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz in the Avenfield corruption reference.

A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar and comprising Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel heard the appeal against the suspension of sentences by the Islamabad High Court.

The bench after going through arguments from both sides upheld the decision of the Islamabad High Court. Justice Khosa remarked that the high court decision is an interim order and the apex court would not intervene in the high court’s proceedings.

The apex court, in its ruling, said that the NAB failed to provide the

“ground for cancellation of bail” and that the Islamabad High Court had not exceeded its authority in granting bail to the convicts of the Avenfield reference.

The Supreme Court’s decision brings a rare relief for the Sharif family, both of whose leaders — Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif — are currently incarcerated.

At the outset of the hearing on Monday, the chief justice told NAB

prosecutor Akram Qureshi to “convince (the bench) why the IHC’s ruling should be suspended”.

The chief justice told the NAB counsel to delineate the grounds on which the apex court can suspend the granting of bail. “Also tell us if the high court had the authority to suspend the sentence,” he added.

Qureshi explained that his argument stood on the basis of earlier cases heard by the top court, claiming bail can only be granted in the case of “hardship”, which was not the reason behind IHC’s verdict.

The NAB prosecutor pointed out that the IHC had questioned the merit of the trial in its judgement — something, he said, a high court cannot do in a bail plea.

“Nawaz Sharif was granted bail on the same grounds that had led to his conviction,” observed Justice Gulzar Ahmed. “You did not challenge those grounds.”

Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, who is set to succeed Justice Nisar as the top judge, said that NAB’s argument was not “solid” and rejected the claim that the high court had exceeded its authority.

He further said the high court had mentioned that its “observation was not final”.

The chief justice told the NAB prosecutor that “an interim order is never final and (it) never affects the final verdict either”. — islamabad — The Supreme Court on Monday referred an appeal seeking suspension of the death sentence of mentallyill prisoner Khizar Hayat to a larger bench for hearing, and adjourned the case for an indefinite period.

A two-member bench comprising Justices Manzoor Ahmed Malik and Sardar Tariq Masood heard the appeal filed by Khizar Hayat’s mother Iqbal Bano.

On Saturday, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar had taken notice of the issue and sought a report to ascertain his ailment, suspending his sentence until further orders. He had also directed the law officer to verify whether the condemned prisoner was mentally ill.

On Monday, Bano’s lawyer pleaded before the bench that the Supreme Court had halted executions in similar cases in the past. Justice Manzoor Malik remarked that this point was not raised during the trial and now when the prisoner was set to be punished, an appeal had been filed.

The lawyer said that Hayat was diagnosed with schizophrenia during the trial, adding that a six-member medical board constituted in 2016 had also confirmed his mental illness and in accordance with law a person with a mental illness cannot be executed. —