ISLAMABAD - The acquittal of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz, in the Rs16 billion money laundering case by a special court of Lahore, has once again vindicated the PML-N stance on ‘political victimization’.
It is the third major success for the party in the last one month on the legal front that has a far reaching impact on the political arena as well.
The events, bringing comfort for the leading party in the coalition government, began from the return of its stalwart Ishaq Dar in the last week of September and successfully holding of the office of the federal minister for finance and revenue.
The wave remained continued in the first week of October when Senior Vice President of the party Maryam Nawaz Sharif and her husband Captain Retired Safdar Awan were also acquitted by the Islamabad High Court in a NAB case followed by a comeback of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on national media after a gap of almost four years. Now, a brief verdict was announced by judge special court Ijaz Hassan, the younger Sharif and his son were acquitted on Wednesday.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had booked Shehbaz and his two sons, Hamza and Suleman, in November 2020 under Sections 419, 420, 468, 471, 34 and 109 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, read with Section 3/4 of Anti-Money Laundering Act.
Suleman had been declared a proclaimed offender by the court for his constant absence in the trial proceedings. The decision has transmitted a wave of satisfaction amongst the party’s rank and file.
Taking to Twitter, the premier thanked God for victory in the “false, baseless, and political revenge-based case of money laundering”. “We stand vindicated in front of the court, law and nation today,” he added. Former Punjab chief minister and PM’s son Hamza also tweeted that the “truth has emerged victorious” today, recalling that he was detained in the “political case” for 22 months. Meanwhile, doing a press conference here at Islamabad soon after the verdict was announced, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Atta Ulla Tarar maintained that the truth has prevailed with the blessing of God
