Shahbaz departs for London amid clamor for Model Town report release

LONDON: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif on Saturday left for London amid the clamor for releasing Model Town probe report.

CM Punjab’s departure has come at a time when the provincial government is being pressurized for release of Model Town incident report which claimed 14 lives of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) workers.

Earlier today, PAT petitioned Lahore High Court (LHC) to initiate contempt proceedings against Shahbaz Sharif and the provincial Chief Secretary over defiance to court orders for releasing the Model Town report.

On Friday, several workers of PAT took to roads and staged a protest demonstration outside Civil Secretariat against the provincial authorities for withholding the Model Town incident inquiry report in defiance of the Lahore High Court (LHC) verdict.

Demanding the immediate release of the Justice Baqar Najafi report on the incident, PAT activists chanted slogans against PML-N government and Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif for dragging feet on the issue.

Speaking to media, PAT leader Khurram Nawaz Gandapur said the government had withheld the report in violation of the LHC verdict. If it did not release the report, the party will again approach the high court seeking contempt proceedings against the authorities for flouting its orders, he added.

NAB dispatches subpoenas to Nawaz Sharif, children in London

National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has dispatched subpoenas to Nawaz Sharif and his children on Saturday, which has been received by Pakistani High Commission in London.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has also reached London to attend a high-level PML-N huddle to be chaired by deposed PM Sharif to discuss national and political issues, whereas Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif and Maryam Nawaz are already there.

According to sources, the bigwigs of PML-N are likely to discuss Article 62 and 63 of the constitution, besides NAB references filed against the Sharif family.

On Thursday, another stalwart of the ruling party, finance minister Ishaq Dar had decided to extend his stay in London after anti-graft body filed an appeal against the LHC verdict in the Hudaibiya Paper Mills case, sources said.

Sources further said that Finance Minister would weigh up hearing of Hudaibiya Paper Mills case in Supreme Court before making any decision with regard to returning back to Pakistan.