Islamabad: Ousted Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Mohammed Safdar will appear before the accountability court on Monday.
The two boarded Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK-786 from Heathrow Airport in London and arrived in Pakistan on Sunday.
Maryam Nawaz and her husband are required to appear before the court on Monday for the hearing of a reference filed against the Sharif family on the order of the Supreme
While Maryam Nawaz has the option to get pre-arrest bail, the warrants of her spouse are non-bailable, which has given rise to an interesting situation — whether the son-in-law of the former PM would be arrested on return.
On October 2, the accountability court issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of the ex-Premier’s sons Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz and son-in-law Mohammed Safdar. The court issued bailable warrants for Maryam Nawaz.
Judge Muhammad Bashir issued directives to arrest and present Maryam, Hassan, Hussain and Safdar before the court on the next date of hearing. Deposed PM Sharif appeared before the court on October 2 but could not be indicted due to the absence of his family’s members facing the trial along with him.
Highly-placed sources in the PML-N said Maryam Nawaz’s return to Pakistan had much to do with the trial in the accountability court where she and her husband were expected to appear on Monday.
Given the condition of her mother Kulsoom Nawaz who has had three surgeries in London related to the treatment of her lymph node cancer, Maryam Nawaz may not stay in Pakistan for long and is likely to leave for the United Kingdom after a few days, the insider said.
The ex-PM is scheduled to be indicted by the accountability court on Monday but he left for London a few days back to attend to his ailing wife and there is no indication that he would make it to the crucial court proceedings. For many, leaving for London ahead of the indictment is a tactical move by Sharif to skip being indicted.
