ISLAMABAD Sept 20 (TNS): The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Wednesday filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the Lahore High Court (LHC)’s judgment regarding the Hudaibiya Paper Mills case against the Sharif family and others.
The anti-graft body, in its petition, has pleaded the apex court to revoke the LHC’s judgment in the case.
Chief Minister Punjab Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz Sharif were also made parties in the petition as the anti-corruption watchdog claimed to find fresh evidences against the duo.
Analysts are of opinion that once the apex court rules on the appeal, the accountability body will be able to pursue the case once more.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) had submitted the entire record of the Hudaibiya Paper Mills to the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the Panama case.
Earlier, Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rasheed had submitted a petition in the Supreme Court against NAB’s failure to reopen the Hudaibiya Paper Mill case.
The petition stated that on July 21, during the hearing of the Panama Papers case, NAB had informed the apex court it would reply in seven days regarding the reopening of the Hudaibiya case.
The Musharaf government had launched an investigation against PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif back in 2000 for their alleged involvement in money-laundering.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who is a close aide and relative of the Sharifs, had given a confessional statement before a magistrate, alleging that Sharif brothers used the Hudaibya Paper Mills as cover for money laundering during the late 1990s.
Dar later retracted his statement and claimed the statement was gleaned under duress.
