Kulsoom Nawaz likely to return next month

ISLAMABAD: Kulsoom Nawaz, ailing wife of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, is likely to return to Pakistan in March if the doctors’ team get satisfied with her medical reports after sixth session of chemotherapy for the cancer disease, the reliable sources told The News here on Saturday.

“The 6-month deadline given by the Supreme Court to the Accountability Court to wrap up the proceedings in the references against the Sharif family--Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Hussain Nawaz, Hasan Nawaz and Captain (R) Safdar--expires in March, so the return of Kulsoom Nawaz to Pakistan may be highly crucial in the political scenario of Pakistan,” the sources said.

The sources said Kulsoom Nawaz on January 8 last month successfully went through her fifth chemotherapy session in London, and, now, the doctors would re-examine her health after six session of chemotherapy, adding, “If the team of doctors show its satisfaction over her health recovery then Kulsoom Nawaz will likely to return to Pakistan next month.”

The references against the Sharif family members were filed in light of the Supreme Court’s July 28 decision in the PanamaPapers case. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was given six weeks, from the date of the court's order, to file the reference in the Accountability Court while the court was granted six months to wrap up the proceedings.

If convicted, the accused can face up to 14 years imprisonment and disqualification from holding public office, including the freezing of bank accounts and assets.

The sources said Nawaz Sharif was all set to pay visit to London this week but when the Accountability Court rejected his plea to get exempted from appearing before the court and NAB wrote a letter to the Interior Ministry to place his name on the Exit Control List (ECL) he decided to remain in Pakistan and face the situation.