Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the review petitions filed by ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his children and finance minister Ishaq Dar, challenging his disqualification in the Panama Papers scandal. The court had reserved its verdict on the review petitions after the lawyers for all petitioners completed their arguments earlier in the day.
A five-judge Supreme bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa had taken up the petitions seeking review of the court's July 28 judgment which disqualified 67-year-old Sharif for dishonesty and ordered the filing of corruption cases against him, his children -- Hussain, Hassan and Maryam Nawaz, son-in-law Mohammad Safdar and Dar.
"For reasons to be recorded later, all these review petitions are dismissed," Justice Khosa announced.
The reasons for the judgment will be revealed later in the detailed order, the Dawn reported. With the rejection of the review petitions, Sharif's disqualification as a member of parliament remains valid. The Sharif family and Dar will now face corruption cases filed by the National Accountability Bureau in the accountability court.
The Supreme Court had on Thursday asked Nawaz Sharif to have trust in the court which had always come to his rescue in the past.
While addressing senior counsel Khawaja Haris Ahmed, representing Nawaz Sharif, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa observed that there is no need to get apprehensive merely because one decision has come against you.
The observation came when Nawaz Sharif's lawyer Khawaja Haris expressed the reservation that his client might not get fair trial in the accountability court since everything in the corruption references against Sharif and his children had been attributed to the Supreme Court.
