Pak Court orders to return Nawaz Sharif's seized properties
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Islamabad: A Pakistan court on Friday ordered to return properties and assets including vehicles and bank accounts seized from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 2020 in connection with the Toshakhana corruption case.
Judge Muhammad Bashir of the Islamabad accountability court passed the order after hearing the case against the former PM who returned to Pakistan on October 21 after about four years of self-imposed exile in London, media reported.
He had gone to London after getting medical bail following his conviction in the Avenfield Apartment and Al-Azizia corruption cases.
More than 1,650 canals (approximately 0.8 sq km) of agricultural land, a Mercedes Benz car, a Land Cruiser, and other vehicles were confiscated from the three-time PM after he was declared a proclaimed offender in the Toshakhana case, the report said.
The court had ordered the seizure after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) submitted a report to an accountability court, providing complete details of Sharif's movable and immovable assets, during a hearing of the Toshakhana case.
Ahead of Sharif's arrival in Pakistan in October, his legal team approached the Islamabad High Court, which granted him a protective bail until October 24 in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia cases, but an anti-corruption court suspended his arrest warrant in the Toshakhana case.
On October 24, Sharif marked his attendance in the Accountability Court of Judge Bashir and was allowed to leave after the judge witnessed his presence in the courtroom.
During the hearing, the NAB prosecutor contended that Sharif had surrendered, therefore, his arrest warrant should be cancelled. If the warrants are cancelled, then the trial can move forward, he said.
The judge subsequently confirmed Sharif's bail in the case against surety bonds of Rs 1 million. The hearing of the case was adjourned till November 20.
With inputs from PTI