A division bench of Lahore High Court on Friday adjourned to September 9 the hearing of seven identical appeals of Sharif family against National Accountability Bureau (NAB) after its Punjab director general ensured that property documents and other confiscated belongings of the appellants will be produced on next date of hearing.
The bench headed by Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan directed the Director General Rana Zahid Mehmood to present a cheque worth Rs 115 million also in the name of LHC deputy registrar (judicial). The appellants informed the court that the bureau had taken the amount from them through bank transactions and never returned.
Sharif family had taken plea that the NAB was not releasing their properties seized in 2001 in order to recover fine imposed by an accountability court and an anti-terrorism court on PML-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif in cases of plane hijacking and purchase of a Russian helicopter.
Initially, these appeals were filed at Rawalpindi bench of the LHC, however, they were transferred to principal seat (Lahore) due to unavailability of bench in Rawalpindi. Among other appellants are Sabina Abbas, daughter of Mian Abbas, Hudabiya Paper Mills, Hudabiya Engineering Services, Chaudhry Sugar Mills, Ramzan Sugar Mills and Hamza Spinning Mills.
An accountability court on July 22, 2000 sentenced Mian Nawaz Sharif to 14 years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 20 million in helicopter case. While in plane hijacking case, an anti-terrorism court of Karachi had convicted him on April 6, 2000, and awarded life imprisonment with a fine of Rs 500,000 and attachment of his movable and immovable property.
The conviction, however, was set aside by Supreme Court on October 30, 2000. The appellants submitted that despite the conviction was set aside by the apex court, the NAB was not releasing their seized properties and resorted to coercive measures against them. In a petition filed by Hudabiya Paper Mills through its Secretary Syed Ajmal Sibtain and 15 shareholders, all members of the Sharif family, the company sought recovery of 7.07 million share certificates attached by Mohammad Shabbir Khan, the then director of NAB in Lahore on May 16, 2001, to recover the fine.
The petition of Shahbaz Sharif was filed by Tariq Dastagir Khan seeking recovery of original sale deed executed by Murree Improvement Trust in Shahbaz's favour of a plot No 53-C of Damaged Area Scheme in Murree. The agreement was seized by Lahore NAB authorities on January 16, 2002. Sabina Abbas, daughter of Mian Abbas, sought detachment of sale deed of May 12, 1984, registered with sub-registrar of Murree in favour of the petitioner in respect of property No 54 on the Hill Road in Murree.
Chaudhry Sugar Mills, through its Secretary Syed Ajmal Sibtain, sought the recovery of its Rs 5 million acquired by the Lahore NAB on April 6, 2002, through cross cheques. Ramzan Sugar Mills sought recovery of Rs 110 million taken by the bureau in 2001 and 2002 through six bank transactions.
Hudabiya Engineering Services, through its Secretary Syed Ajmal Sibtain, sought recovery of its 204,500 share certificates attached by NAB in Lahore on May 16, 2001. Hamza Spinning Mills, through its Secretary Tariq Dastagir Khan, sought recovery of its 2.735 million share certificates.
The appellants argued that it was unlawful on the part of NAB to recover the fines imposed on Nawaz Sharif from other members of his family. They said after the clearance of Nawaz Sharif from the apex court, NAB should have released the attached property and shares, but despite repeated applications it had failed to do so.
Comments
Comments are closed.