Hassan, Hussain acquitted in Avenfield, Flagship, Al-Azizia cases

ISLAMABAD: Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana Tuesday acquitted former premier and PMLN Quaid Muhammad Nawaz Sharif’s sons Hassan and Hussain Nawaz in the Avenfield, Flagship and Al-Azizia cases. The court, presided over by Judge Nasir Javed Rana, had reserved the verdict.

The NAB prosecutor, Afzal Qureshi, informed the court that no appeal had been filed against the acquittal of Nawaz’s sons or incumbent Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. He added the main accused in the case had been acquitted earlier. The petitioner’s counsel, Advocate Qazi Misbah, stated that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had acquitted Nawaz after relying on the same documents that supported Maryam’s acquittal.

Misbah read the short decision of Nawaz’s acquittal in the court and said, “NAB had not filed an appeal against the acquittal of Maryam Nawaz and if the main accused in the case was acquitted, the case could not proceed on the charge of aiding and abetting.” In the flagship reference, Nawaz was acquitted by the trial court after the NAB had withdrawn its appeal on November 29, 2023 against the decision of the trial court. “Now the decision of the accountability court is final. The third case was the Al-Azizia reference, the trial court sentenced Nawaz and on December 12, 2023, the IHC acquitted him in the Al-Azizia reference,” the counsel added.

The NAB official stated that the plea to extend Nawaz’s sentence had also been withdrawn. “The NAB did not even appeal to the Supreme Court against the acquittal decision,” said Misbah adding that even if all the evidence had been accepted, there’s no chance of sentencing.

Earlier, the same court had granted Nawaz’s sons a major relief by revoking its earlier order declaring them proclaimed offenders and cancelling their permanent arrest warrants. The court also admitted the plea for their acquittal and directed the NAB to present all records of the cases. Hassan and Hussain were granted relief after they surrendered themselves before the accountability court judge. The brothers returned to Pakistan on March 12 after the same judge suspended their arrest warrants on March 7.