ISLAMABAD: Akram Sheikh, who originally represented Hassan, Hussain and Maryam Nawaz in Panamagate case, issued a clarification stating that his clients owned the letter of Qatari prince and supplanted it with another letter produced in the court.
Sheikh further wrote in his clarification, copy available with Pakistan Today, that everything he did was on instructions of his clients and nothing was done contrary to any such instructions. “I advised my clients professionally with which sometimes they agreed. Being their counsel, I was bound to act on their instructions regardless of my advice or opinion. I am bound by the rules of counsel-client privilege, therefore, suffice it to say at this stage, I cannot go into details of the matter unless my clients waive the privilege,” it reads.
The clarification of Barrister Akram Sheikh comes at a time when reportedly the ruling family expressed its dissatisfaction with one of its lead counsels stating that the counsel withheld crucial documents and didn’t submit them before the bench.
Also, sources near to the ruling party confided that first family is also seeking a legal opinion from other top-notch lawyers.
The three counsels that represented Sharif family in Panamagate case were, Makhdoom Ali Khan, considered by many as Pakistan’s top litigator, who represented Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Shahid Hamid represented Maryam Nawaz, Ishaq Dar, and Captain Safdar, and Salman Akram Raja represented Hassan and Hussain Nawaz.
Of late, the ruling family has been seeking legal advice from top-notch lawyers, including Khwaja Haris and veteran lawyer Khalid Anwar, whether to review the petition or not. The dilemma Sharif family, however, faces lies in the fact that if it opts to go for the review, it won’t be able to change counsels and have to proceed with same lawyers.
While giving a clean chit to Maryam Nawaz, the operative part of the judgment spelled out 9 matters for the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to investigate, including the establishment of Gulf Steel Mill and its businesses, sudden appearance of the letter of Hammad Bin Jassim Al-Thani, and gifts from Hussain Nawaz to the prime minister among others.
