Nawaz Sharif departs for London ahead of indictment in graft cases

LAHORE: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday departed for London to visit his ailing wife, Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

After arriving at Lahore International Airport earlier today, the ex-PM left for London via Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK-757.

Sharif’s secretary Mohammad Hanif Khan was accompanying him on the occasion.

The copy of Sharif’s flight ticket – obtained by ARY News – has an inscription read the return date on January 4, 2018.

This is Sharif’s second visit to London after his wife was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat cancer) by foreign doctors.

It is apropos to mention here that Sharif had returned to Pakistan on September 25 to face three graft references filed against him by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in compliance with the Supreme Court orders.

On Oct 2, the court had deferred the framing of charges against him and set Oct 9 new date for his indictment. It had issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of his children over their perpetual absence from the proceedings.

Following the passage of Election Reforms Act 2017 on Tuesday (Oct 3),  Sharif was re-elected unopposed as the president of PML-N party since no other party leader submitted nomination papers for the slot of the party president.

Currently, the former prime minister and members of his family are facing three graft references in connection with their flats in a posh London neighbourhood, Al Azizia Steel Mills and Flagship Company Ltd and other offshore companies.

On July 28, the apex court had disqualified former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and ordered the filing of references against him, his children and finance minister Ishaq Dar in light of the Panama joint investigation team report.