–AC judge says sentenced Nawaz without ‘fear, favour’
–Says ‘out of context’ video is an attempt to malign him
–Maryam says judge has attested video’s content by not denying it
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Accountability Court (AC) Judge Arshad Malik on Sunday rejected the accusations of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz that he had convicted her father Nawaz Sharif in the Al-Azizia reference under coercion.
Denying the accusations in a press release issued on Sunday, the judge said that he had sentenced the former premier in the said reference without any “fear of favour”.
On Saturday, Maryam opened a Pandora’s box with a startling claim that the judge of an accountability court confessed he had been “pressurised and blackmailed” to convict her father in the case.
A video containing the judge’s alleged confession during his conversation with a ‘sympathiser’ of the PML-N, Nasir Butt, was screened during a hurriedly-called presser at the party’s provincial headquarters in Model Town, Lahore.
Malik on Sunday said that he had watched the press conference as well as the video attributed to him. “Serious allegations were made against me; it was a conspiracy to affect my credibility as well as that of my institution and my family. Therefore, I want to present the facts,” he said.
“I am a resident of Rawalpindi and have been appeared before courts as a lawyer before joining the judiciary. The individual shown in the video, Nasir Butt, is also from the same city and is an old acquaintance. Nasir Butt and his brother Abdullah Butt have met me many times at numerous instances,” the judge said.
Malik said that the “video shown in Maryam sahiba’s press conference was not only contrary to the facts but it was also a despicable attempt to mesh together various instances and topics spoken about, and to present them out of context”.
“After Maryam’s press conference, it is necessary that the truth be brought forward […] during the hearing of the cases against Nawaz Sharif and his family, I was repeatedly offered bribes by their representatives and also given threats of serious consequences if I did not cooperate,” alleged the judge in the press release.
“I decided to stay committed to the truth and left my life and wealth in the hands of God. Had I announced the verdict under pressure or greed, I would not have acquitted him [Nawaz Sharif] in one case and convicted him in the other,” said the judge.
Judge Malik, on December 4, 2018, had handed the ousted prime minister seven years sentence in Al-Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference, but on the same day acquitted him in a second reference related to Flagship Investments, saying “there was no case against Nawaz”.
“While dispensing justice, I announced conviction of Nawaz Sharif on the basis of evidence in the Al-Azizia case whereas acquitted him in the Flagship case,” he said.
“I also intended to make it clear that indirectly or directly, neither was there any pressure on me nor was there any greed. I made these decisions knowing God is omnipresent and on the basis of the law and the facts. This press conference was held merely to make my decisions controversial/disputable and to gain political advantages,” he added.
The judge further said that the videos shown during the press conference are “fake and based on lies and assumptions”. Therefore, legal action should be taken against those individuals involved in this, the judge concluded.
‘CONTENT ATTESTED’:
Responding to the statement issued by the judge, Maryam, in a tweet, said, “To the honorable judge who passed a verdict against his conscience after being subjected to blackmailing and coercion: I can understand that you must have signed on an already drafted press release under compulsion like the verdict. Thank you very much! You have attested the evidence by not denying the video. The rest to be revealed in Mandi Bahauddin.”
Meanwhile, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb, while speaking to the reporters, said that Judge Malik did not deny the conversation recorded on tape had taken place and asked why, if he had faced pressure from Nawaz’s camp, he had not reported it previously. “Why did he not report to the Supreme Court (SC) supervisory judge about threats, bribes and blackmail?” she asked.
On Saturday, while addressing the press conference, Maryam said that there was no evidence against her father. She said that it was “embarrassing” that a three-time premier had been languishing in jail on charges of corruption and money laundering.
She said that it is commonly said that the defence did not submit any evidence in the case but that could not further from the truth. “We gave receipts and evidence but it wasn’t accepted,” she clarified.
Expressing reservations on the trial, she said everyone knew this was a conspiracy instead of accountability. She said the cases against Nawaz were decided even before the trial.
Speaking further about the judge, she said the judge also [allegedly] claimed that Nawaz being treated unfairly. “He didn’t give the verdict rather it was handed over to him,” she said.
“In the video, the judge can be heard explaining that in order to make any instrument work it is necessary to tighten its screws. You can make any sound come out of the instrument as per your will,” Maryam quoted the judge as saying in the video.
She then showed another clip in which Judge Malik allegedly claimed that Nawaz did not commit any corruption.
The PML-N VP claimed that the judge didn’t find “allegations of financial corruption, illegal gratification, commissions or kickbacks were received by the accused [Nawaz Sharif] or were paid by any person or department” to be true.
