Islamabad (Staff Report): Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday filed an appeal in the Supreme Court of Pakistan for reviewing the July 28 Panama Papers verdict which had disqualified him from his office.
The petitions were filed by Sharif’s lawyer Khawaja Harris, requesting the apex court to dismiss the applications of PTI Chairman Imran Khan, AML chief Sheikh Rasheed, and JI chief Sirajul Haq.
A 34-page petition states the five-member bench had no power to hear Imran Khan’s plea.
Among the petition, a stay application has also been filed to stop implementation on SC’s decision in Panamagate case.
Nawaz, through his appeal, has argued that the July 28 decision should have been given by a three-member bench since Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and Justice Gulzar Ahmed’s jurisdiction had expired after their dissenting judgement on April 20.
“By signing the the final order of the court” on July 28, Justice Ahmed and Justice Khosa “have actually passed two judgments in the same case, which is unprecedented in judicial history,” the appeal says.
“On the face of the record, there are four final judgements passed in this case; the first of these final judgements being the minority judgement dated 20.04.2017 of the two members of the originally constituted 5-member bench, the second being the majority judgement dated 20.04.2017 passed by the 3-member bench, the third judgement […] dated 29.07.2017 again passed by the 3-member bench of this court, and the fourth being the Final Order of the Court dated 28.07.2017 passed by the originally constituted 5-member bench,” says the appeal.
The five-member bench that made the unanimous July 28 decision, which resulted in ouster of Sharif, will hear the review petitions.
Five more appeals are expected to be filed soon by Sharif’s sons – Hassan and Hussain Nawaz; his daughter Maryam Nawaz; Captain Safdar; and Ishaq Dar.
On July 28, 2017, the Supreme Court of Pakistan had disqualified Nawaz Sharif for not disclosing his employment with FZE Capital, in a landmark decision in the Panamagate case.
