PML-N leaders question merits of verdict against Sharif

Jailed former premier Nawaz Sharif's party leaders on Tuesday questioned the merits of a verdict by an anti-corruption court against him, calling the judgement as targeted accountability by a "selected" government.

Sharif, 69, was sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills graft case but was acquitted in the Flagship Investments case by the Accountability Court in Islamabad on Monday.

"First Sharif was disqualified (by the Supreme Court) for not taking salary from his son and now convicted for receiving money from his son," former minister and senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Ahsan Iqbal said while addressing a press conference with other top PML-N leaders.

The first case in which Sharif was disqualified, the crime ascertained was that he did not take salary from his son, Iqbal said, adding this time the allegation levelled is that 'since your son sent you money, therefore you stand disqualified'.

Iqbal said that the reasons used to sentence Sharif could be used to criminalise every Pakistani living in the Gulf and sending remittances back home.

"Now I want to raise this question that in the Middle East up to 3.5 million Pakistanis remit money to their families, so would they (families) be considered their business partners or co-owners? If any son sends money to his parents, will they be held guilty?" he asked.

He said the prosecution failed to prove that Sharif was the real owner of the Al-Azizia and he was punished on the basis of presumptions.

"The ongoing accountability process is basically a selected prime minister committing selected accountability. The opposition leaders are being targeted but those in government are not touched," he said, referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, whose Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party won the general elections held in July.

PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah said that his party would protest inside the parliament as well as on the streets against the selected accountability.

He also announced to consult other opposition parties to "bring in-house change to dislodge the government".

Former Sindh governor Mohammad Zubair urged the prime minister to also hold his own party leaders accountable, especially those who "have admitted themselves that they had offshore companies".

Minutes after the PML-N presser ended, PTI leaders led by Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry conducted a press conference of their own.

Chaudhry said that Iqbal and other PML-N leaders failed to defend their leaders who was convicted for corruption.

Regarding PML-N leaders' repeated labelling of the premier as a "selected prime minister", he reminded them that "the PML-N itself was engineered by General Zia."