Nawaz, Maryam could be released on parole to attend Kulsoom's funeral

LAHORE: Incarcerated former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and her spouse capt (retd) Safdar are expected to be released on parole  to attend funeral ceremony of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz in Lahore, ARY News reported.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif met them at the Adiala Jail and discussed arrangement’s for Kulsoom’s burial.

Begum Kulsoom is expected to be buried at the ancestral graveyard at Jati Umrah residence in Raiwind.

‘Parole for 12 hours’

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said Nawaz Sharif would have to follow the legal procedure if he gets released on parole in the light of court orders.

He said the government had no objection to his being given parole, instead he assured that Nawaz’s plea will be legally processed. He said every possible facility will be provided to Nawaz, as per the law.

“Jail officials accompany an accused when he/she is given parole,” he said adding that according to the law, parole was given for 12 hours.

Her funeral prayers will be offered at the Regent’s Park mosque in central London. The arrangements to bring back her body will be made after a death certificate is issued and it would take two to three days, at least.

Shehbaz Sharif is expected to leave for the United Kingdom on the next available flight to bring back the body of his sister-in-law who passed away in London after a long battle with cancer.

Read More: PM, president, army chief condole demise of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz

Kulsoom Nawaz breathed her last at a hospital in London after a prolonged illness. The political career of the former first lady remains far from any controversy, unlike embroilment of her family members in different cases.

Born into a Kashmiri family in Lahore, she attended Islamia College and Foreman Christian College University for her graduation. Kulsoom was married to Nawaz Sharif, with whom she has four children. Kulsoom Nawaz served as the President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) from 1999 to 2002.

Kulsoom became First Lady of Pakistan for the first time after her husband, Nawaz Sharif, became Prime Minister of Pakistan on 1 November 1990 when his political alliance, Islami Jamhoori Ittehad, won 104 of 207 seats contested in the general election of 1990.

His first term as Prime Minister ended in July 1993.

 

It is pertinent to mention that Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and her spouse Safdar, were convicted by an accountability court in the Avenfield reference case on July 6. Nawaz Sharif was sentenced to ten years in prison, while Maryam was imprisoned for seven years.

Safdar was sentenced to one year prison without any fine. He was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau on July 8 and has been serving time at Adiala Jail ever since.

The new federal cabinet also placed their names on the Exit Control List on August 21. The Lahore High Court has also denied their plea to set their convictions aside.