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‘B’ class cell has facilities like a bed, newspaper, fan, and 21-inch television
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Ministry of Law and Justice late issues a notice that the trial of remaining NAB references against Sharif family will take place in Adiala
ISLAMABAD: Deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif has been allotted a ‘B’ class category in the jail and it has also been decided to keep his daughter Maryam Nawaz in Adiala, and not sent her to Sihala rest house.
On Friday night, Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were jailed a couple of hours after a team of the NAB formally arrested them at the Lahore airport on their arrival from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as several thousand party supporters gathered on the streets of Lahore to ‘welcome’ their leaders.
An anti-graft court in Islamabad had on July 6, sentenced Nawaz to a total of 11 years in prison and slapped a £8 million fine (Rs1.3 billion) in the Avenfield case, whereas Maryam received an eight-year sentence with a £2 million fine (Rs335 million).
According to sources, the plan regarding keeping the father-daughter duo’s stay at the jail was changed thrice after it was decided to allot the former prime minister ‘B’ class cell which has facilities like a bed, newspaper, a bed, a fan, newspaper and 21-inch television.
The sources further said that the former prime minister has been given a room with ceiling fan and local bed. As per the jail manual, they were given omelette, tea and bread in breakfast. Maryam took the complete meal, while Nawaz Sharif took a cup of tea and blood pressure medicines.
Further, a female deputy superintendent jail has been given the special assignment for Maryam Nawaz.
Earlier, a notification issued by the Islamabad administration shortly after Nawaz and Maryam were taken to Adiala Jail had declared the rest house at the Sihala Police Training College in the capital as a sub-jail to keep the two figures, with immediate effect and until further orders.
Sources then said that only Maryam would be moved to the rest house. However, later sources claimed that the authorities decided to keep the two at Adiala jail for now.
Maryam is being kept at the women’s cell in Adiala Jail, the sources said. Last night, police officials at Adiala Jail conducted the medical examination of Nawaz and Maryam and declared them fit.
AL-AZIZIA, HILL METAL REFERENCES TO TAKE PLACE IN ADIALA:
Ministry of Law and Justice late Friday issued a notice that the trial of remaining National Accountability (NAB) references against Sharif family, including Al-Azizia Steel Mills, Hill Metal Establishment, offshore companies, and Flagship Investment Limited, will take place in Adiala Jail.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by subsection (b) of section 16 of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 (XVIII of 1999), the federal government is please to specify the Central Jail Adiala, Rawalpindi, to be the place where the Accountability Court-I, Islamabad shall sit for trial of References No. 18/2017 and 19/2017 against Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and others,” the notification read.
On Thursday, the accountability court rejected petition pertaining transfer of Al-Azizia reference to another judge. Judge Muhammad Bashir is currently hearing all the references against Sharif family.
The convicted father-daughter duo landed in Lahore amid an impressive power show put up by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Friday, as thousands of workers and sympathisers reached the Mall Road by breaking through cordons amid an unwarranted police crackdown ordered by the interim provincial government.
As soon as he landed in Lahore, the deposed prime minister and his daughter were taken to the Haj Terminal where Nawaz’s mother Shamim Akhtar was present to meet her son and granddaughter. After completing the immigration formalities, Nawaz and Maryam were put on a private jet and flown to Islamabad from where they were escorted to the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi amidst tight security for medical examination.
Both Nawaz and Maryam were moved to their cells in Adiala jail.