Graft case: Pakistan court rejects Nawaz’s plea for bail

Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court on Thursday turned down former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s bail plea on medical grounds in a corruption case.
A two-member bench pronounced the verdict after hearing the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader’s counsel and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor, Dawn newspaper reported.
Sharif was sentenced in December 2018 to seven years in prison in the Al Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference. He was jailed for failing to explain the ownership of the steel factory in the name of one of his children.
The case was filed in the wake of the apex court’s July 28, 2017 order in the Panama Papers case.
During Thursday’s hearing, Sharif’s lead defence counsel Khawaja Haris Ahmed informed the court that the former Premier was seeking suspension of sentence and subsequent release for medical reasons.
Haris said that “more than 60 per cent health condition of Sharif is in danger” and that he needs further treatment.