Shehbaz Sharif reacts to Toshakhana verdict

Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday slammed the decision to suspend the sentence awarded to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman in the Toshakhana case.

In his message on X, formerly Twitter, the former premier wrote that the IHC had been ‘influenced’ by the apex court’s leniency toward the PTI chief.

“The “favourite’s” sentence has been suspended, not terminated.

لاڈلے کی سزا معطل ہوئی ہے ختم نہیں ہوئی۔ چیف جسٹس کا “گُڈ ٹو سی یو” اور “وشنگ یو گڈ لک” کا پیغام اسلاآباد ہائی کورٹ تک پہنچ گیا۔ فیصلہ آنے سے پہلے ہی سب کو پتہ ہو کہ فیصلہ کیا ہوگا تو یہ نظام عدل کے لئے لمحہ فکریہ ہونا چاہیے ۔ اعلی عدلیہ سے واضح پیغام مل جائے تو ماتحت عدالت یہ نہ…

— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) August 29, 2023

“Chief Justice’s message of “Good to see you” and “Wishing you good luck” reached Islamabad High Court. If everyone knows what the decision will be before the decision comes, it should be a moment of concern for the justice system,” the former premier wrote.

He further stated that when a “clear message” was received from the higher judiciary, the subordinate court would follow suit.

“A monitoring judge was appointed to ensure Nawaz Sharif’s punishment, [and now] the chief justice himself [has become] a monitoring judge to save the ‘favourite’,” he wrote, slamming the courts for giving Khan relief.

The IHC verdict today comes as a major legal victory for Khan who was sentenced to three years in jail and fined Rs100,000 in the Toshakhana case by Additional Districts and Sessions Judge Dilawar Humayun — after finding him guilty of corrupt practices related to the state gift repository — in a move that barred him from contesting elections due later this year.