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Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday acquitted Pakistan's ex Prime Minister and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif in two corruption cases for which he was convicted in 2018. Nawaz Sharif was acquitted on November 29 in the Avenfield reference case, as the court nullified the decision of his conviction in the reference, according to the Islamabad based reports. Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has also reportedly withdrawn the PML-N supremo's acquittal in the Flagship reference.

A bench comprising of IHC Chief Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Miangul Hasan Aurangzeb heard Nawaz’s appeals against his sentence in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia Steel Mills cases. The former Pakistan’s Prime Minister was sentenced for 10 years to prison in the Avenfield Apartments case for being in the possession of the assets beyond the known income as well as for not cooperating with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). He was officially proclaimed as offender in the case in December 2020 after which, Nawaz headed out to London citing the health grounds and returned to Pakistan only last month.

NAB plans to appeal extension in Al-Azizia reference? 

Nawaz was present in the court during the legal hearing. An appeal was filed earlier in the day in relation to his acquittal in the Flagship reference, which was withdrawn. NAB also plans to appeal the extension of the former premier’s sentence in the Al-Azizia reference, according to Pakistan based broadcasters.

Nawaz's lawyer Amjad Pervaiz told the judges that there were, in fact, three facts that predated the reference filing. He evoked the Islamabad Supreme Court’s ruling about Nazwaz’s Panama Papers case that led to his disqualification as he appealed for the establishment of a joint investigation team (JIT) in response to the court’s verdict. While Just Aurangzeb chided Nawaz’s lawyer for questioning the court’s verdict, he reminded the court that the JIT has already submitted a comprehensive 12-volume report to the apex court in July 2017 and all the details regarding the JIT's formation and members were submitted to the court. Just Aurangzeb enquired with the Nawaz’s lawyer if the directives were issued to the NAB chairman regarding the Supreme Court’s order on the former Prime Minister.

The decision of Nawaz’s acquittal was slammed by Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) that called out at the hypocrisy of NAB, saying that "they’re giving unprecedented relief to Nawaz Sharif, but when it comes to Imran Khan and his bogus cases IK will be first illegally arrested and then an illegal jail trial will take place.”