–Petition says LHC may have ‘fallen in error’ by not considering ‘cardinal principle of criminal law envisaged under Section 9(b) of NAO
ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Friday moved the Supreme Court (SC) against the bail granted to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz by the Lahore High Court (LHC) in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills (CSM) reference.
On Nov 4, the high court granted post-arrest bail for an indefinite period to Maryam, who is the prime suspect in the reference. At the time, the Bureau had decided to challenge the verdict, saying it “has ‘concrete evidence’ against Maryam” and she “is perfectly healthy – contrary to her claims”.
In its petition, NAB argued that the LHC, in granting bail to the PML-N leader, might have “fallen in error” because it did not consider the “cardinal principle of criminal law as envisaged under the provisions of Section 9(b) of NAO, (National Accountability Ordinance) 1999”. As per Section 9 (b) of NAO, all offenses under the ordinance are non-bailable.
NAB’s petition further said that the LHC might have also ignored previous SC orders in this regard.
The accountability watchdog suspects Maryam of involvement in money laundering through investments worth as much as Rs900 million and being the main shareholder of the mills. It has alleged that she was involved in money laundering with the help of some foreigners during the period of 1992-93 when Nawaz was the prime minister.
The Bureau urged the apex court to allow it to “examine the legality, propriety and vires” of the LHC verdict. It further prayed that the top court sets aside the high court’s decision and cancels Maryam’s bail in the “interest of justice”.
Maryam had approached LHC on Sept 30 seeking post-arrest bail in the case. Following the sudden deterioration in the health of her father, Nawaz Sharif, she then filed a miscellaneous petition on Oct 24 seeking immediate bail on the basis of “fundamental rights” and “humanitarian reasons”.
Meanwhile, following Friday’s hearing, the court extended the judicial remand of Yousuf Abbas till Dec 20.
The PML-N leader had been arrested along with her cousin Yousuf Abbas by NAB in the CSM corruption case on August 8. On September 25, they were sent to jail on judicial remand by an accountability court in Lahore.
