Tag: Sharif family

  • Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday claimed that the Sharif family is preparing to launch a campaign against him after Eid.

    Expressing his views during an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum News, Khan said, “Now that Eid is over, you will see they [Sharif family] are fully prepared for my character assassination. They have hired companies that are readying the material.”

    “I had to face mafias, the biggest of which is the Sharif mafia […] they always attack on a personal level because they are indulging in corruption for the past 35 years. When someone [points out] their corruption, they attack a person’s character,” said Khan.

    “Instead of responding to the theft of billions of rupees, the Sharif family will focus on immorality,” Khan said, adding that they had previously pursued a fake case against his ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith.

    “What was Jemima’s crime? She was my wife. Now they have Farah Khan because she is close to Bushra Bibi,” he added.

    He went on to say that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and “made videos” similar to the ones of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.

    “This is mafia style. I only want the nation to understand that if you want to smear anyone’s name, there are companies that can help you achieve this.”

    He added that the PTI had announced its long march to Islamabad by the end of May due to which the Sharifs wanted to lower his respect in the eyes of the public and assassinate his character.

    He added that 60 per cent of the federal cabinet was out on bail. “The father (Shehbaz) is on bail and so is the son (Hamza). Maryam is also out on bail and Nawaz Sharif has been convicted [while] his sons have fled abroad. So what [other] defence will they have?”

    He said that in a democracy, they were required to give an answer for the allegations levelled against them. “You can’t come up in any democracy if you are out on bail; you can’t get any position.”

  • ‘I also voted to let him go’, Asad Umar clarifies comment that PM sent Nawaz to London

    ‘I also voted to let him go’, Asad Umar clarifies comment that PM sent Nawaz to London

    Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar has clarified his previous statement about Prime Minister’s (PM) decision to send Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif to London. He said his statement was taken out of context.

    “Spin being given to an answer of mine regarding Nawaz Sharif exit abroad, the discussion was about whether the PM takes decisions or someone else imposes decisions. I stated that the PM takes decisions as I was asked about the Nawaz Sharif exit decision in that context,” Umar tweeted.

    Further, he added that sending Nawaz to London was a “collective decision and was decided in the Cabinet”.

    Previously, while on a TV program the federal minister revealed that it was “100% Imran Khan’s decision” to send the former PM to London for his medical treatment. “This was first discussed in a cabinet meeting,” he said, adding that the decision was entirely made by the prime minister and the premier did not say that the decision was not his. 

  • ‘They [PML-N] are mafias, always influence courts’: PM Khan

    ‘They [PML-N] are mafias, always influence courts’: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Thursday, lashing out at the Opposition, said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) are known for “using unfair tactics” to influence courts.

    While referring to the affidavit case of the former chief judge of Gilgit-Baltistan Rana Shamim, the prime minister said the PML-N generated the controversy of the affidavit to pressurise the court which was hearing the case of its leaders Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz.

    “They [PML-N leaders] are mafias and they always influence courts when they feel that they are about to decide their cases,” said the premier.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Faisal Javed informed the media that PM Khan had said that the Sharif family had again been exposed for trying to pressure the judiciary, reports The Express Tribune.

    “The PML-N has pressured courts in the past as well for making decisions in its favour. Everyone knows that the PML-N has a history of pressuring the judiciary” the senator quoted the prime minister as saying.

    “The Sharif family is fighting for its survival while we [PTI] are fighting the nation’s war,” said Javed.

    Talking to a group of spokespersons, the premier urged his spokespersons to vehemently counter “controversies” being created by Opposition leaders, especially in the media, reports Dawn.

  • ‘Never been hospitalised, activities uninterrupted’: Attorney General wants committee on Nawaz’s health

    ‘Never been hospitalised, activities uninterrupted’: Attorney General wants committee on Nawaz’s health

    The attorney general’s office on Wednesday asked the Punjab government to consider establishing a medical board or a committee that could determine the current status of Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, reports Dawn.

    In November 2019,  Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)’s supreme leader was granted one-time permission by a bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC).

    In a two-page letter, addressed to Punjab Home Secretary Zafar Nasrullah Khan, the attorney general’s office wrote: “In order to initiate the process of verification in the light of the Nov 16, 2019, Lahore High Court order, the government of Punjab is requested to constitute a medical board/committee to examine the documents submitted as medical reports on behalf of the petitioner and Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif so that expert medical opinion regarding the physical condition of Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif and his ability to travel back to Pakistan is made available.”

    The letter was written in line with the federal cabinet’s instructions to the Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan to initiate proceedings against the Sharif family.

    The letter pointed out that Nawaz Sharif’s “apparent present physical condition was available in the media”.

    “Given the fact that he had left the country claiming to be in extreme critical condition which prima facie improved significantly after his arrival in London and the fact that he has apparently never been hospitalised and his political, social and other recreational activities have continued uninterrupted… indicate that severe ailment, if any, that may have existed in [the] past is no longer evident or [constrains] his activities,” the letter said.

    “This is further reinforced by the public statements made and reported in the media by his close family members including Shehbaz Sharif and other political associates, who recently met Nawaz Sharif in London,” the letter recalled.

    Earlier this week, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, while addressing a press conference after a cabinet meeting, said that Nawaz Sharif was not seeking medical treatment for the past 17 months.

    “Shehbaz Sharif was the guarantor of Nawaz Sharif,” said the minister.

    “The drama of Nawaz Sharif’s health was created here,” said Fawad, adding that Nawaz went out of Pakistan through fraud.

    “[PML-N President] Shehbaz Sharif is involved in this fraud. According to his statement, Shehbaz Sharif should take steps to bring Nawaz Sharif to Pakistan,” said Fawad.

    “The Federal Cabinet has decided to approach the High Court on the false affidavit of Shehbaz Sharif,” said the minister.

  • Daily Mail yet to submit evidence in Shehbaz Sharif’s defamation case

    Daily Mail yet to submit evidence in Shehbaz Sharif’s defamation case

    The Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), publishers of The Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, are yet to submit evidence in Shehbaz Sharif’s defamation case after seven months of delay, reports Murtaza Ali Shah for Geo News.

    Earlier this year in February, Justice Sir Matthew Nicklin of the London High Court ruled that the article by reporter David Rose carried the highest level of defamation (Chase level 1 – the highest form of defamation in English law) against both Shehbaz Sharif and his son-in-law Ali Imran Yousaf.

    The Daily Mail has asked for three extensions, citing [previous] continuing travel restrictions and Pakistan’s Red listing as its team was unable to visit Pakistan to collect evidence, as per sources. However, now that the ban has been lifted, the Mail’s lawyer’s third extension is going to end in a few days.

    In July 2019, renowned media law firm Carter-Ruck sued British newspaper The Mail on Sunday, online news site Mail Online and its journalist David Rose on behalf of Shehbaz Sharif for publishing a “politically motivated” article. The story, published on July 14, 2019, had suggested that Shehbaz and his son-in-law Ali Imran Yousaf “stole British taxpayers’ money” given to Earthquake Relief and Reconstruction Authority (ERRA) set up to help the victims of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake.

  • NAB strongly reacts to Maryam’s tirade

    NAB strongly reacts to Maryam’s tirade

    Reacting to PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz’ tirade, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has dismissed the same as an attempt to halt ongoing investigation against the Sharif family in Chaudhry Sugar Mills and money laundering cases.

    A day ago, Maryam had questioned who gave the bureau the right to “judge [her] statements”.

    Taking notice of the allegations that came as NAB moved LHC seeking cancellation of Maryam’s bail, the bureau, in a press release, said that the PML-N leader was trying to cause differences among institutions.

    “Statements against NAB and judiciary had been given in the past and attack over NAB Lahore office last year is evidence of it.”

    The bureau claimed that Maryam had “challenged law and order by giving inciteful speeches”, citing the violence that had erupted during her appearance at the NAB Lahore office in August last year.

    “NAB is an independent institution and striving to eliminate corruption from the country without any discrimination.”

    Read more – Maryam Nawaz being threatened, says Nawaz

    It said that after NAB summoned her in a personal capacity, Maryam was “making efforts to create an environment of chaos in the country, besides continuing to give treasonous statements against respectable institutions like NAB, judiciary and law enforcement agencies”.

    The primary purpose of these statements was to create obstacles in, and influence, the investigation of cases related to corruption and money laundering against the Sharif family besides promoting conditions that were detrimental to peace, the handout said.

  • Broadsheet ends up paying £20,000 to Sharifs in London lawsuit

    The company hired by Pakistan to trace assets of the Sharif family in London, Broadsheet LLC, has ended up paying £20,000 (Rs4.5 million or Rs45 lacs) to the Sharifs in the lawsuit before the London High Court, Geo News reported.

    According to reports, Broadsheet has made the payment for the settlement of the Sharif family’s legal costs after having withdrawn the Avenfield Apartments attachment application for the seizure and sale of four Avenfield Apartments in the Broadsheet vs Pakistan/National Accountability Bureau (NAB) case.

    Lawyers acting for the Sharif family have confirmed that the payment has been received in their bank account whereas Broadsheet’s lawyers have also confirmed making the payment.

    Sharing the development on Twitter, Maryam said those who had gone to identify corruption, ended up paying Rs4.5 million to save themselves.

    “Nawaz Sharif had left it up to Allah,” she tweeted, adding that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and his team will also have to “pay their fines” that will be from their own pockets and not the treasury.

  • Hussain Nawaz challenges govt to trace Sharifs’ alleged $1 billion

    Hussain Nawaz challenges govt to trace Sharifs’ alleged $1 billion

    Hussain Nawaz, son of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, has challenged that the government can keep 90 per cent of the amount if it can trace the $1 billion allegedly stashed by the Sharif family in offshore accounts.

    According to Geo News, Hussain Nawaz said that claims made by the government that Sharifs have stashed $1bn in foreign accounts are propaganda against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and his family.

    Speaking about the Broadsheet scandal, Hussain said that the government of Pakistan had to pay $60 million to the asset recovery firm in a bid to implicate the Sharifs in corruption cases.

    Hussain said the judgement authored by Sir Anthony Evans had stated that the London asset recovery firm hired Matrix Research Limited to investigate assets of Nawaz and eight members of the Sharif family for a year soon after NAB signed a contract with Broadsheet LLC but it did not find anything illegal.

    The former premier’s son said foreign governments don’t believe in the “lies” told on Pakistani media about Nawaz and his family. He further said that ex-PM Nawaz was disqualified as the prime minister of Pakistan on the account of “not taking a salary from his son”.

    Nawaz had left for London for a medical check-up last year after his health deteriorated in jail. The ex-premier, who was convicted in two graft cases, has refused to return since. The government also decided to cancel his passport on Feb 16 in a bid to bring him back.