Sharif corruption case : Hearing against family on Nov 8

The Accountability Court in Rawalpindi has set November 8 for hearing the Ittifaq Foundry, Hudyabia Paper Mills and Raiwind corruption cases against former premier Nawaz Sharif, his brother and former Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif and their family has issued notices to the Sharifs to appear before it in person.

Judge Khalid Mehmood issued the directive following a claim by the prosecution that the amnesty given to PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto under the newly promulgated National Reconciliation Order (NRO) does not cover the Sharifs because the cases against them were registered after the cut-off date of November,1 1999.

The judge directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to produce the accused at the next hearing, stating that otherwise the cases would be put-off for an indefinite period. On Friday, NAB Deputy Prosecutor – General Zulfiqar Ahmed pleaded that the court should not adjourn the hearing sine die because the accused were expected to return to Pakistan early next month, as stated by Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) acting president Javed Hashmi.