A lot to answer for
The Supreme Court of Pakistan has barred Mian Nawaz Sharif from participating in elections for life, as his embattled ruling party prepares for nationwide polls due later this year. The ruling was the latest in a series of blows to Mr Sharif who was previously disqualified from the post of prime minister in July after a probe ordered by the Supreme Court on Panama Papers found him guilty of not disclosing monetary assets from his son’s Dubai based company. Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar observed that the public deserves politicians of good character before handing out the verdict on the issue.
With the ongoing trial as well as investigation of the deposed prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif and his family members, it is not prudent to comment on it. However, since in every public appearance Mian Nawaz Sharif asks the inevitable question as to why he was deposed, it is imperative to share his charge sheet with his well-wishers. Nawaz Sharif claims that no allegations had been framed against him so far; hence, the case against him is the first one of its kind.
The family has numerous indictments including being loan defaulters in lttefaq Foundries, Hudabia Paper Mills and alleged corruption in Raiwind estate.
Aside from the above, the allotment of 15 acres of precious land to M/S REDCO at Murree caused huge loss to national exchequer. Additional charges include the import of wheat from USA (1997) at inflated rates and the misuse of official resources causing loss of Rs620 million to national exchequer by developing 1,800 acres land in Raiwind at state expenses.
The case of the Hudaibiya Paper Mills is curious as on 18 March 1999, The High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division London, delivered a judgment whereby it ordered Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif to pay US$17.719 million
If that were not enough, the whitening of black money in Mian Nawaz Sharif’s first tenure (1990-1993) caused a loss of Rs180 million to national exchequer by evading taxes. There are also allegations of Nawaz Sharif and his financial wizard Saif-ur-Rehman having reduced import duty from 325pc to 125pc on import of luxury cars (BMWs), causing a huge loss of Rs1.98 billion to the national exchequer but benefitting themselves and their cronies.
On imposition of emergency and freezing of foreign currency accounts, Nawaz Sharif and Saif-ur-Rehman removed US$11 billion from Pakistani banks illegally without the consent of account holders. Foreign Exchange Bearer Certificate (FEBC) accounts were frozen and foreign exchange was misappropriated. Millions of Pakistanis, who were caught unawares, suffered with their life savings having been frozen. Distraught parents who were saving foreign currency to pay for their children’s tuition fees abroad were left to fend for themselves. Those traveling abroad on private expenses for medical treatment were caught in the lurch, with the amounts set aside for the purpose being frozen indefinitely. The curses of all those affected must have had a negative impact on the Sharif family, which is now belatedly paying for its sins.
The story of the highway robbery does not end here. Availing bank loan for Ittefaq Foundries, establishing Brothers Steel Mills without fulfilling legal requirements and massive wealth tax evasion can be added to the endless list of wrongdoings. There is also the case of favouring Kohinoor Energy Co, causing a loss of Rs450 million. Additionally, causing Rs35 billion loss to national exchequer by writing off/rescheduling personal bank loans and plundering Rs200 million from Jahez and Baitul Mall funds can also be added to the charge sheet.
The Sharif family, known for its close relationship with India, obliged them by relaxing export duty and rebate for transport of sugar to India.
Readers may recall the case of Nawaz Sharif being accused of tax evasion and fraudulently purchasing a helicopter, which he used for campaigning in the mid-1990s. He had been sentenced to 14 years’ rigorous imprisonment for the crime but had left the country, without serving it, under a political deal.
A loan of Rs900 crore by Sharif family from National Bank of Pakistan in 1990s was not paid back. An amount of Rs300 crore was adjusted but the remaining amount is still outstanding against the family. Loans amounting to Rs4,635,540,179 were taken by the “Sharif Group” in 1990. As per State Bank list of 31 March 1998, the total amount of loan defaulted by the Sharif Group against advances/ loans stands at Rs3,282,022,000.
Illegal extraction of heavy amount of Rs6,146 million by Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif and his family members for 19 industrial units owned by them, comprise the following:- Nationalised/ Privatised Banks/-Rs4502.659 million; Departments/ Financial Institutions; Private/Foreign Banks-Rs1126.00 million; Non-Bank Financial Institutions-Rs517.742 million.
The case of the Hudaibiya Paper Mills is curious as on 18 March 1999, The High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division London, delivered a judgment whereby it ordered Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif to pay US$17.719 million and Mian Muhammad Sharif and Mian Abbas Sharif to pay US$14.712 million to M/S Al Towfeek Leasing Company.
Another case that has recently emerged is a major gold robbery. In February 2015, it was announced by Mian Nawaz Sharif that rich deposits of gold had been discovered in Chiniot, along with iron ore, copper and nickel. The now deposed prime minister had gleefully declared that Pakistan’s days of extending the begging bowl were over as the people of Pakistan would be enriched by the proceeds from the gold deposits. Unfortunately, the gold has disappeared without a trace. A local TV channel, in its investigative report, disclosed that according to an audit report prepared by Auditor General of Pakistan, an attempt to smuggle foreign currency and gold worth Rs93 million was made in May 2015 at the Lahore airport. The involvement of Mohammad Tofeeq, aka Teefi Butt, was presented by the TV channel in the smuggling case. The report asserted that the prime suspect Abdul Basit during interrogation revealed Teefi Butt had given foreign currency and gold to him for smuggling. It said that Butt is considered a close aide of Nawaz Sharif.
It will be difficult for the defence team of Mian Nawaz Sharif and his family to refute the charge sheet but the judiciary will afford them the opportunity to clear their name against this heavy charge sheet.
