IHC grants 14-day protective bail to PM’s son Suleman Shehbaz
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday granted 14-day protective bail to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son Suleman Shehbaz in the money laundering case registered by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against him.
Chief Justice Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Aamer Farooq heard the petition of Suleman Shehbaz.
During the hearing, IHC CJ Justice Aamer Farooq asked Suleman’s lawyer, Amjad Pervez to appear his client before the court.
Pervez told the IHC CJ that his client has to appear before a special judge central in Lahore.
In his petition before the IHC, Suleman contended that he left Pakistan in 2018 and the case was registered against him in 2020. He also shared that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had not issued a call-up notice to him, adding that he was declared a proclaimed offender by the court without any action.
The IHC had earlier ordered Suleman to surrender before it by December 13 and barred authorities from arresting him till then.
After hearing the arguments of Suleman’s lawyer, the court granted the 14-day protective bail to the Prime Minister’s son and ordered Suleman Shehbaz to appear in the Lahore’s court within 14 days.
Earlier on Sunday, Suleman Shehbaz has landed in Pakistan after spending over four years of self-exile in the United Kingdom.
PM Shehbaz’s son touched down in Islamabad from Saudi Arabia via a foreign airline flight SV726 early hours of Sunday. Later, he took another flight to reach Lahore. Before reaching Pakistan, Suleman performed Umrah with his wife and children.
Background:
Suleman had reached London from Pakistan ahead of the 2018 general elections when the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) registered several cases against him.
He was accused of money laundering and misuse of public office by Imran Khan’s former accountability aide Shahzad Akbar, but he was given a clean chit after two years of investigation by the UK’s top anti-corruption body.
The UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) had started investigation in 2019 by freezing the assets of Shehbaz Sharif and Suleman Shahbaz.
After two years of investigations in other countries including the UK, the NCA had told the court that they had found no evidence to support the allegations. The NCA had released the assets without taking any further action after the investigation.
