ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani opposition party lawmakers tore up the agenda and shouted in a parliament session on Friday as they demanded that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif step down during an investigation into his finances.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif waves from a vehicle as he arrives to attend the Pakistan Day military parade in Islamabad, Pakistan, March 23, 2017. REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood

Opposition leader Imran Khan said he would lead protests demanding Sharif’s resignation, saying the prime minister had lost the moral authority to stay in office while being investigated.

The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday there was insufficient evidence to order Sharif’s removal from office but called for further investigation into corruption allegations in connection with the so-called Panama Papers leaks.

A five-member bench was split three vote to two in favor of Sharif retaining his position.

On Friday, opposition lawmakers chanted slogans demanding Sharif’s resignation and tore up the assembly’s agenda for the day, before the speaker suspended the session, television footage showed.

“I was the petitioner in the case, the hearing continued for four months, at least I should have been allowed to speak in the parliament,” Khan, a former cricket star, later told reporters outside the assembly.

The Supreme Court, in its 549-page judgment, ordered a joint investigation team be formed to look into allegations around three of Sharif’s four children using offshore companies to buy properties in London.

The investigating team has two months to complete its inquiry, after which a special bench will decide what action to take, the court said.

The prime minister and his children deny any wrongdoing.

The joint investigation team will comprise members from six different government bodies including intelligence agencies and financial regulatory authorities.

“At least three institutions are directly under the control of the prime minister and his ministers. I don’t see how they would take a stand against the prime minister,” legal expert Farogh Naseem told Reuters.

While the court’s decision has been celebrated by Sharif’s ruling Pakistan Muslim League as a victory, legal experts and analysts say the extended investigation undermines his authority as he heads into an election due next year.</s>Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, will know his political fate on Thursday as the country’s Supreme Court is set to issue its ruling on corruption claims against him. Questions arose over his family’s business dealings when three of his children were linked to offshore accounts in the Panama papers leaks. Mr Sharif and his family … Continue reading Panama Papers: Pakistan PM, Nawaz Sharif Awaits Ruling

The post Panama Papers: Pakistan PM, Nawaz Sharif Awaits Ruling appeared first on Channels Television.</s>Islamabad: Embattled Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif might have narrowly escaped the jinx attached with April, a month in which Pakistani premiers have previously been overthrown, sentenced to life and hanged.

Narrow escape

Sharif yesterday narrowly survived being disqualified after a 3-2 split decision by a Supreme Court bench which said there was "insufficient evidence" to remove him from office, but ordered setting up of a Joint Investigation Team to probe the allegations of money laundering against his family.

The high-profile graft case is about alleged money laundering by Sharif in 1990s when he twice served as the Prime Minister to purchase assets in London that surfaced when Panama papers last year showed they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif's children.



Supporters of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) celebrate at a rally after the Supreme Court verdict. Pic/AFP

The curse of April

Interestingly, the apex court verdict comes in the same month during which previously Sharif and his government was sacked in 1993 and later, he sentenced to life imprisonment in 2000 in the infamous 'plane hijacking case' based on allegations that Sharif had disallowed to land a plane carrying then army chief Gen Pervez Musharraf.

However, other Pakistani premiers too have suffered a bad fate in April.

The worst April in history of the country was April 4, 1979 when former prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was hanged for criminal conspiracy to kill a leading politician.

29 No. of assets the Sharif family is alleged to be holding currently

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan yesterday demanded Sharif's resignation after the SC repreieve. "I demand that Sharif should resign immediately as he has lost moral authority to rule the country," Khan said. Khan termed the verdict as indictment of Sharif as the bench did not absolve him of the allegations.</s>Nawaz Sharif, the only Pakistani politician who has the distinction of being the prime minister of the coup-prone country for a record three times, today managed to avert the ignominy of being forced out for a third time without completing his term. Sharif, who was forced to quit twice in the middle of his term – first by the presidency, then the military – survived a similar fate at the hands of judiciary. Sharif, who leads the country’s most powerful political family and the ruling PML-N party, successfully managed to swim through all the “tsunamis” since he assumed power for the third term in June 2013.

The PML-N leader, seen by many as someone who can fix the country’s problems such as economy and the terrorism, had found himself besieged by problems after Panama papers showed illegal money laundering by him in 1990s when he twice served as Prime Minister to purchase assets in London.

The revelation forced Sharif to address the nation twice and disclose a detailed account of his family’s businesses in the National Assembly, explaining how his late father had built the business empire, which was the source of income used to buy properties in London and other holdings. Sharif, popular among his followers as the ‘Lion of Punjab’, had promised to quit if found guilty in the case.

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The ruling by a five-member bench today to set up a Joint Investigation Team to probe the graft allegations against Sharif’s family provided him a big relief at a time when country is facing brittle economy and surge in militancy.

A steel tycoon cum politician, Sharif had served as the Prime Minister for the first time from 1990 to 1993.

During his tenure, Sharif developed serious differences with conservative president Ghulam Ishaq Khan, who dissolved the National Assembly using his reserve powers in April 1993. In July, Sharif resigned under pressure from the army but made a settlement that resulted in the removal of Khan as well.

Sharif’s second term as Prime Minister from 1997 ended in October 1999 when then powerful Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf carried out a bloodless coup.

In a dramatic fall from grace, Sharif ended up in jail, convicted of hijacking charges for trying to stop a plane carrying Musharraf from landing. He then went into exile in Saudi Arabia and didn’t return to Pakistan until 2007, when he teamed up with the PPP to force Musharraf from office. Both of Sharif’s first two stints had ended in the third year of his tenure.

In the 2013 elections, Sharif’s centre-right Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) emerged as the single largest party falling just short of a majority. But, he was able to muster the required strength within days as many independents came forward to support him.

During his third term, Sharif has managed to swim through several crisis such as massive protest rallies outside the parliament in his second year in office by cricketer-turned- politician Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party and supporters of influential cleric Tahirul Qadri.

During this tenure, Sharif launched a number of development projects including the multi-billion China- Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). His another major achievement has been the launch of military operation Zarb-e-Azb in 2014 to flush out the militants from North Waziristan and South Waziristan.

Sharif, who was considered to be soft on hardliners, backed a ban on Tablighi Jamaat from preaching in educational institutions. In a stern message to extremists, his government hanged Mumtaz Qadri who shot dead Punjab Governor Salman Taseer in 2011 over his opposition to blasphemy laws.

In the beginning of his term in 2013, the PML-N leader had promised to improve relations with India and he developed good chemistry with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who made a surprise visit to Lahore to meet Sharif.

However, terror attacks on Indian defence installations last year by Pakistan-based terrorists derailed the Indo-Pak relations.

Under the Sharif regime, Pakistan has been at loggerheads with India over several issues, including on Islamabad’s support to terrorism.

Sharif was born in 1949 into a wealthy family of industrialists in Lahore and was educated privately at English-language schools. He received a degree in law from the University of Punjab before joining his father’s steel company and eventually entering politics.

Under the patronage of former military ruler Zia-ul Haq, Sharif became first finance minister and then chief minister of Punjab – a post he held for five years from 1985 until he was elected prime minister in 1990.</s>The Pakistan Supreme Court will shortly announce the verdict in the Panama Papers leak case that implicated the country’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family members.

Prior to the judgment, there was a widespread fear in Pakistan that Nawaz may lose his job as the Prime Minister. There were also reports in Pakistani media that the ruling party of Pakistan, PML-N, was already mulling on the alternatives, including a call for an early election, in case the court judgment forced Nawaz to step down.

Last year, the Panama Papers leak by a consortium of international journalists had revealed that Sharif and his relatives owned offshore companies in tax havens dealing in millions of dollars in property transactions. The revelation had shocked the countrymen, forcing the PM to clear the air on television on April 5, 2016. Nawaz Sharif even said he was open to a probe into Panama leaks by a judicial commission. However, his clarification failed to convince the opposition or stop Pakistani people from worrying about his dubious business deals.

Here is what Panama case is about:

The Panama Paper leak, which also became famous as ion media parlance as Panamagate scandal, revealed that eight off-shore companies were linked with Nawaz, his children and his brother, Chief Minister of Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif.

Following Nawaz’s attempt to get rid of the taint on Pakistan TV, a committee of five ex-SC judges approached by the government to probe the allegations against Sharif and his family refused to do so.

In May last year, the then Pakistan military chief General Raheel Sharif asked the PM to resolve the Panama controversy, according to Dawn.

In October last year, the Pakistan Supreme Court accepted petitions filed by several parties in connection with the Panama papers leak against Nawaz. Later in the same month on October 28, the SC formed a larger bench to initiate proceedings into the case.

In January this year, a BBC report revealed that Sharif family had purchased properties in London’s upscale Park Lane neighbourhood in the 1990s and there was no change in ownership since then. A few days later, A German daily tweeted documents showing Nawaz Sharif’s daughter Maryam’s involvement in the Panamagate. On February 23, the SC reserved its judgment in the case after concluding the hearing.</s>Pakistan is waiting with a baited breath for the Supreme Court’s decision in the high-profile Panamagate case against Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif and his children amid speculation that the adverse ruling may force him to step down. The Supreme Court announced yesterday that its five- member bench will issue the verdict in Panama case later in the day. The case was launched on November 3 and the court held 35 hearings before concluding the proceedings on February 23.

The case was based on several identical petitions by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan and others about alleged illegal assets of the family of Sharif in London. The assets surfaced when Panama papers showed that they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif’s children.

The petitioners have asked the court to disqualify 67- year-old Sharif under Article 62 and 63 of the constitution because he was involved in corruption and was no more “honest” and “truthful” as given in the Constitution. It is generally believed the court may not disqualify the Prime Minister but it may pass comments which will bring a lot of moral pressure on Sharif to step down.

“I don’t think he will be disqualified but his moral authority may be impacted,” said Manzoor Wassan, a senior leader of opposition Pakistan People Party (PPP). Asif Ali Zardari, the co-chairman of PPP, in an interview with a private TV channel asked Sharif to resign in case the decision was against him.

“We did not resist when the Supreme Court disqualified [then premier] Yousaf Raza Gilani. We chose another prime minister. Nawaz should do the same,” said Zardari. Zardari’s handpicked Prime Minister Gilani stepped down in 2012 when the Supreme Court convicted him for disobeying court orders.

Zardari chaired an important meeting of PPP yesterday and also called another meeting today after the decision will be announced to assess the political situation. Sharif’s nemesis Imran Khan and his party announced to launch movement for next election irrespective of the outcome of the decision. Khan held a meeting of party leaders yesterday and asked them to stay in Islamabad to decide further course of action after the court verdict.

Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, one of the petitioners, said that the decision will be “historic”. “It will result in a political earthquake in the country,” he said in Rawalpindi.

Meanwhile, in a series of tweets Maryam Nawaz dispelled the impression that the premier was worried about the expected judgement in Panama case.

“People love Nawaz Sharif. It is not about the prime minister speaking. It’s what he’s speaking. His narrative is constructive and about development and progress. Eyes forward, mind focused, heart ready…game on, world ! Wazir-e-Azam Nawaz Sharif,” one of her tweet said.

She also taunted the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf saying: “When all your plans have miserably failed and your precarious future hinges on… your best bet is a court decision”.

Sharif’s supporters are adamant that their leader was “innocent” and will emerge stronger after the verdict. “His name is not in the Panama leaks. He is not committed any wrong. So he will be victorious,” said Railway Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique. Rafique also said that election will be held on time (next year).

The security has been increased in and around the court. Dozens of policemen and personnel of law enforcing agencies are present around the court premises. Regardless of the impact of the decision, it is believed that it will be an important milestone in the fight against corruption.</s>LAHORE, April 20 (APP): Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz

 Sharif Thursday congratulated Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif

 on verdict of Supreme Court.

 Shehbaz Sharif said that another conspiracy of opponents had failed just

 like sit-ins and picketing plan went in vain, and those who were

 against Pakistan’s development and prosperity of its people had faced

 disappointment.

 He said the PML-N government led by Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif

 would not only honour all its promises made to the people but also win 2018 elections with their support and complete development agenda.</s>Pakistani media on Friday gave a mixed reaction to the Supreme Court’s verdict on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s high-profile graft case with some calling it just a momentary relief while others contemplating its moral impact on the embattled premier. Sharif, 67, on Thursday got a temporary breather from the Supreme Court which said there was “insufficient evidence” to remove him from office but ordered setting up of a joint team to investigate the graft allegations against his family.

Dawn reported that it was neither a clean-chit nor a disqualification for Sharif. “The final verdict was split 3-2 among the five-judge bench, with two dissenting notes from Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and Justice Gulzar Ahmed,” it reported.

The Express Tribune focused on the dissenting note of Justice Asif Saeed Khosa who headed the panel and said that prime minister was not “honest” and hence should be disqualified.

The News also focused on the remarks of Khosa who said Sharif should go home. “Although, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa turned out to be a minority voice in the five-member bench on the Panama Papers, the arguments he advanced for taking on the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will continue to resonate louder than the majority decision,” it reported.

The Nation reported that the main outcome of the judgement was that Sharif stayed on. “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was given a reprieve when the Supreme Court ruled there was insufficient evidence to order his removal from office over corruption allegations, but it ordered further investigations,” it reported.

Urdu papers and electronic media also debated if Sharif would also come out clean of the new probe. Evening talk shows were mostly partisan as the decision and its moral impact were discussed. Those opposing Sharif in the debate asked him to step down on moral grounds.

Meanwhile, local channels are saying that Sharif’s daughter Maryam who was cleared by the Supreme Court in the graft case yesterday is being seen as his successor. Maryam, Sharif’s eldest daughter, is apparently being groomed by her father for the big role and she is often portrayed as his heir apparently due to the fact that his two sons – Hasan and Hussain – live abroad and are more interested in business than politics, local media said.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App now</s>Supreme Court rules there is not enough evidence to order Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's removal over alleged corruption.

Pakistan's Supreme Court has ruled there was insufficient evidence to oust Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over corruption allegations, but has ordered a high-level investigation into the charges.

The court issued its verdict on Thursday afternoon in a case based on the "Panama Papers" leaks that was moved by opposition leaders seeking his removal from office.

"The Supreme Court has decided … the same thing that Nawaz Sharif himself had decided six months ago, when he ordered the formation of a commission to investigate [the allegations]," Khwaja Asif, a senior leader of Sharif's ruling PML-N party, told reporters outside the courthouse following the announcement.

Sharif will remain in office during the course of the investigation, which will also focus on his sons Hassan and Hussain, the verdict said.</s>Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s media savvy daughter Maryam Sharif’s name has been virtually cleared by the Supreme Court in the high-profile Panama case, according to a media report. The Panama Papers leaks alleged that 43-year-old Maryam was the beneficial owner of the London properties owned jointly by her brothers. The petitions claimed that since Maryam was a dependant of Sharif, she should have declared the Mayfair properties in her wealth statement. The verdict, however, was of the view that Maryam “has received cash gifts from her father in substantial amounts on various occasions… receipt of gifts from the father does not necessarily make Respondent No 6 (Maryam Nawaz) his (Nawaz Sharif) dependent in the legal sense of the word”, Dawn reported.

The bench said in the verdict that “we also notice that she owns substantial agricultural property, receives income from the same, holds shares in limited companies worth more than Rs 200 million and her husband also receives a fair amount of money by way of pension as a retired military officer”. In response to the arguments that Maryam lives in the Sharif’s family house, the verdict said: “The mere fact that she has chosen to live in a compound owned by her grandmother does not ipso facto make her a dependent of Respondent No 1 (Nawaz Sharif) either”. The verdict further noted that Maryam “contributes a substantial sum of money towards her share in the joint expenses incurred by her grandmother on behalf of other members of the Sharif family residing in the compound”.

Subsequently, the bench declared, “in this context, whether or not Respondent No 6 is the beneficial owner of the Mayfair Properties becomes irrelevant at this stage, seen from the point of view of seeking disqualification of Respondent No 1 on the ground that he has failed to disclose the assets of a dependent”. Even otherwise, the issue of dependency is a question of fact to be determined on a case-to-case basis after recording evidence. The bench concluded that in these proceedings sufficient material was not available on the record to establish that Maryam Nawaz was a dependant of Nawaz Sharif, in a legal sense. “We do not feel the necessity to discuss this aspect of the case any further, lest it should prejudice the case of either party before a competent forum if and when this issue is agitated,” it said.

In the operating part of the judgement, the bench constituted a joint investigation team comprising representatives of the Federal Investigation Agency, National Accountability Bureau, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, State Bank of Pakistan, Inter-Services Intelligence and Military Intelligence. The court asked the proposed JIT to investigate allegations levelled against Sharif and his sons Hassan and Hussain by the petitioners. A senior lawyer and former deputy attorney general Tariq Jahangiri says that Maryam has been cleared for the time being, but in case the JIT finds some tangible evidence against her she may face the proceedings as well.
Pakistan's opposition interrupts Parliament's scheduled session demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resign during the investigation of his finances, per Thursday's Supreme Court ruling.