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LAHORE: Indictment of Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, his son Hamza Shehbaz and other accused in the money laundering case once again deferred on Monday during the hearing in a special court in Lahore.
Shehbaz and Hamza appeared before the court as Judge Ijaz Hassan Awan resumed the hearing. The court extended their interim pre-arrest bail until March 10. A Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) lawyer filed an application in the court seeking a daily hearing of the case. He said the accused wanted to delay the trial and no progress has been made despite the passage of two years.
Hamza’s lawyer Azam Nazir Tarar said that if the court hears other cases on a daily basis as well, they will have no objection. He said cases involving similar charges were filed in other courts, wherein the accused have been granted bail.
He once again complained that the copies of the charge sheet the accused have been supplied by the prosecution are not readable. The FIA prosecutor said that cases need to be decided within the stipulated time as per the law.
The counsel said that the government has placed the names of Shehbaz and Hamza on the Exit Control List (ECL), due to which they cannot flee abroad. He pleaded with the court to extend their interim.
The court directed the defence and prosecution lawyers to forward their arguments on an application questioning the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case at the next hearing. The court also sought arguments on the FIA application seeking daily hearing of the case.
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Monday came hard on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shehbaz Sharif for causing undue delay in his money-laundering and corruption case by constantly seeking adjournments from the court.
“Another date… Why Shehbaz Sharif is running away from the court if his case is so weak. Why there is opposition of daily hearing of the case and its live coverage?” the minister asked on his Twitter handle. Fawad said both the Sharif and Zardari families knew very well that their safety and well-being remained in ‘escape’ from the courts.