ISLAMABAD: An accoun­tability court on Tuesday declined former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s request for exemption from personal attendance and issued bailable arrest warrants for Maryam, Hussain and Hassan Nawaz, as well as retired Captain Mohammad Safdar, for their absence from its proceedings.

The court directed Mr Sharif’s children to submit surety bonds worth Rs1 million each and adjourned further proceedings until Oct 2.

The former prime minister appeared before court amid tight security. As he entered, the lawyers accompanying him started chanting “Dekho dekho kaun aya, sher aya, sher aya”, while Mr Sharif greeted the judge and the people in the courtroom with a salute in his traditional style.

Bailable warrants issued for Maryam, Hussain, Hassan and Safdar; Dar to be indicted today

Several leaders of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) were also present in the courtroom, including Musha­hidullah Khan, Daniyal Aziz, Talal Chaudhry, Barrister Zafarullah and Maiza Hameed.

Police stopped PML-N activists nearly a kilometre from the court and allowed only journalists to enter after passing through four checkpoints.

Senator Asif Kirmani accompanied Mr Sharif and, before the start of proceedings, told the judge that Maryam Nawaz, her husband and two brothers were currently in the UK to tend to their ailing mother.

However, Accountability Court Judge Mohammad Bashir reminded him that since the counsel was present in court, Mr Kirmani should let him speak for his client.

Mr Sharif’s counsel, Khawaja Haris Ahmed, submitted an application seeking permanent exemption of his client from attending court proceedings.

He said that seeking the exemption was his client’s right, adding that the former PM was facing threats to his life and it would be difficult for him to appear at each and every hearing.

He went on to say that Mr Sharif’s wife had undergone three critical surgeries and was due to undergo a biopsy, adding that his client needed to accompany her at this critical juncture.

Saying that there were a number of precedents where the same court had granted accused exemption from personal appearance, he requested the judge to treat the application the same as “any other case”.

When the judge asked him why Mr Sharif’s children did not appear, the counsel replied that since he was not their counsel, he could not explain the reasons for their absence. However, he reminded the judge that they were in the UK to look after ailing Kulsoom Nawaz.

However, the former PM’s plea was opposed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor, who said it was not necessary for the accused to remain with his wife, since his children were already taking care of her.

The prosecutor said the court could not accept the application for permanent exemption since Mr Sharif was the only accused in the three references that had been filed in the court so far.

The judge, however, told Advocate Haris that the matter of exemption for Mr Sharif would be taken up after the indictment of the accused in all the three references.

The Supreme Court had on July 28 directed NAB to file three references against Mr Sharif and his family.

In compliance with the court’s directions, the bureau filed one reference against the former PM, Maryam, Hussain, Hassan and Capt Safdar relating to the four Avenfield properties in London’s Park Lane neighbourhood.

The references related to Azizia Steel Mills, Hill Metal Company, Flagship Investments and other companies are against the three-time former PM and his sons, while a fourth reference has been filed against Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for possessing assets beyond his known sources of income.

The accountability court will indict Mr Dar on Wednesday (today).

Published in Dawn, September 27th, 2017