Panamagate hearing in Pak SC adjourned as judge hospitalised

Hospitalisation of a senior judge of Pakistan's Supreme Court today forced adjournment of the hearing of high-profile Panamagate case against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family till February 6.
Justice Azmat Saeed Sheikh, a senior judge of the five-member bench hearing the case, was admitted to the Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology late last night following heart complications, official sources said.
"His condition has stabilised, but he still needs medication and may not be able to resume duties before Monday," the sources said.
The hearing of the case has been going on daily basis since January 4 when the bench led by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa took over case from another bench.

The court is hearing five identical petitions alleging that Sharif's family used his clout to illegally transfer money out of Pakistan to help his children buy properties in London.
The lawyers of the petitioners' led by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf of Imran Khan have completed the arguments, but the counsels of Sharif and his children are still giving their arguments.

It is not known how long the court will take to decide the case which will prove "make or break" for Prime Minister Sharif.
The family of Sharif was named in the PanamaPapers, one of the biggest leaks in history. The leak, comprising 11.5 million documents from Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca, shows how some of the worlds most powerful people have secreted away their money in offshore jurisdictions.

Among those named are three of Sharif's four children with the records showing they owned London real estate through offshore companies administrated by the firm.
Sharif and his family have denied any wrongdoing.