ISLAMABAD, Aug 20 (INP): NAB Court on Monday ordered to announce a joint verdict in the two remaining corruption references against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family.

The former premier appeared before accountability court II as Judge Arshad Malik resumed hearing the Al-Azizia and Flagship Investment references.

During the hearing, Nawaz’s counsel Khawaja Harris appealed to Judge Arshad Malik to announce a joint verdict in the two remaining referenced filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the Sharif family. “Accountability court I had also decided on a joint verdict in the three references. However, it only announced its verdict in the Avenfield reference,” Harris said.

[timed-content-server show="08/21/2018 01:00 Asia/Karachi"]“The other two cases were then transferred as verdict on one of them came separately,” Nawaz’s counsel upheld. Approving Harris’s request and ordering a joint verdict in the remaining two references, the court adjourned the hearing till August 27 (Monday). Earlier today, security personnel arrested two people outside Adyala Jail just before the departure of former Premier Nawaz Sharif. Earlier on August 15, during the hearing, the statements of investigating officer Mehboob Alam were recorded in the Al-Azizia reference. Directing Alam to continue recording his statements during the next hearing, the court adjourned the case till August 20 (today) after summoning JIT’s Wajid Zia. The incarcerated former premier and Zia also appeared before the court during the last hearing on August 13. Both the references were heard simultaneously during the last hearing and Zia was cross-examined in the Al-Azizia reference. The head of the Panamagate joint investigation team has yet to record his statement in the Flagship Investment reference. Nawaz’s counsel, Zafir Khan, had submitted an application in the court to get Zia’s statement recorded in the Flagship reference. However, the prosecution opposed the plea and insisted that the cross-examination of Zia should be completed in the Al-Azizia reference first before recording the statement in the second reference. The judge rejected the plea and deferred the hearing of the two references till today. On August 7, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) transferred the two references to Accountability Court II. A two-member bench of the IHC, comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, ordered the transfer of the cases on Nawaz’s plea. Nawaz’s legal counsel had filed an appeal requesting the court to transfer the Al-Azizia and Flagship Investment references from the court of Accountability Judge-I Mohammad Bashir to another accountability court. On July 6, accountability court Judge Mohammad Bashir had announced the verdict in the Avenfield properties corruption reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), handing the ousted prime minister 10 years as jail time and seven years to his daughter Maryam Nawaz. INP/AJ[/timed-content-server]