ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (ViaNews) – The former prime minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz, and son-in-law Captain Safdar (retired) were released from Adiyala Jail this afternoon (Sept 19).
Such recent developments received a mixed response from different strata of society. In some political circles, the news of their release made headlines in all top Urdu-language daily newspapers. The news has become controversial in that the sentences passed on to them, following the Avenfield reference against the accused politicians by National Accountability Bureau (NAB), are just suspended and they have not been acquitted of the charges framed against them.
The Avenfield reference is one of three corruption references registered against the removed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his three children, son-in-law and former finance minister Ishaq Dar in agreement with the Supreme Court verdict in the Panama Papers case.
Now, the accused will have to prove their innocence in the Islamabad High Court and, thereafter, maybe the Supreme Court of Pakistan if so required.
Currently, in the wake of the latest developments in the said case, there are definitely some doubts which the released politicians will have to remove in order to prove not guilty. According to sources, the court judgment alludes to the fact that some kind of solid evidence has not been found to be linked directly to the Avenfield properties. Evidently, that is being branded as a failure of the NAB.
On the other hand, those at the helms of affairs i.e. members of the ruling party and those in authority have however accepted the court verdict open-mindedly which shows in a way that Pakistan’s high courts do not always accept pressure exerted upon them by any quarter or by some influential personality directly or indirectly.
Yet the news of the Sharifs’ release has come as a pleasant surprise to the party men and women as well as their supporters. And they are all out to celebrate the release of their leaders as a great victory of Pakistan Muslim League. Nevertheless, their celebration is overshadowed by the grief that the former prime minister has had last week as a result of the death of his beloved wife, who was not only Mr Sharif’s spouse, but also his mentor whose opinions were given due weight on matters of national and international importance.