ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has sought from the Supreme Court three complete certified copies of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) report in the Panama Papers case that led to the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif as prime minister.

“Please furnish complete set of JIT report along with annexure for filing of the references before the accountability court,” an application submitted to the court by NAB on Friday said.

According to sources, one certified copy of the first nine volumes of the report was provided in response to a similar request made earlier by NAB, while Volume 10 was withheld.

But the bureau needed at least four certified and complete copies to finalise the references against the prime minister, his children and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in accordance with the Supreme Court verdict, the sources said.

Read: NAB didn’t pursue cases against Sharifs, says JIT

The Volume 10 of the report, which contains details of mutual legal assistance (MLA) with various countries, has not been made public by the Supreme Court on the request of the six-member JIT’s chairman Wajid Zia.

Complete copies needed to file references, SC informed

A three-judge JIT implementation bench, headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, had allowed Advocate Khawaja Haris Ahmed, who represented Nawaz Sharif, to go through two pages of the volume.

According to the summary of the report, the volume consists of MLA requests initiated by the JIT chairman under Section 21 of the National Accountability Ordinance 1999.

The MLA requests were made to the attorney general of British Virgin Islands, the United Kingdom Central Authority, interior ministry of Saudi Arabia, justice ministry of the United Arab Emirates, Central Authority of Switzerland and prosecutor general of Luxembourg.

Disqualifying Mr Sharif under Article 62(1)( f) of the Constitution, a five-judge bench in its July 28 judgement asked NAB to file four references before the Rawalpindi accountability court within six weeks on the basis of the material collected and referred to by the JIT as well as that already available with the Federal Investigation Agency and NAB.

According to the court order, NAB has to file a reference against Mr Sharif; his children Maryam Safdar and Hussain and Hassan Nawaz; and son-in-law retired Capt Muhammad Safdar relating to four upscale Avenfield flats in London.

Another reference against Mr Sharif and his sons about Azizia Steel Company and Hill Metal Establishment and one regarding 16 other companies were ordered. The companies are Flagship Investments, Hartstone Properties, Que Holdings, Quint Eaton Place 2, Quint Saloane, Quaint, Flagship Securities, Quint Gloucester Place, Quint Paddington, Flagship Developments, Alanna Services (BVI), Lankin SA (BVI), Chadron, Ansbacher, Coomber and Capital FZE (Dubai).

The fourth reference has to be filed against Mr Dar for possessing assets and funds beyond his known sources of income.

To monitor and supervise the work of NAB as well as to oversee the proceedings in the accountability court, the Supreme Court has nominated one of its judges, Justice Ijazul Ahsan.

Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2017