Lahore - Country’s renowned legal experts believe the explosive claims made by PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz could help her father secure release from jail, if they turn out to be true.

At the same time, they say, the video and audio ‘proof’ presented by her would prove devastating for Accountability Court judge Arshad Malik, who convicted the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Al-Azizia Steel Mills reference in December last year.

The dramatic presser came at a time when a dual bench of Islamabad High Court is hearing an appeal of de-facto PML-N chief against his conviction. On June 27, the court had deferred the appeal hearing until September due to summer vacation.

At the presser, the PML-N leadership played a secretly recorded video which, Maryam claimed, features conversation between judge Arshad Malik and Nasir Butt, a supporter of Nawaz Sharif.

LHC official says recording should be presented to IHC bench hearing appeal against conviction

Maryam said the judge had contacted Nasir and told him that he was blackmailed by some persons trough an immoral video of him for giving a verdict against the former prime minister. The judge’s admission was recorded at his house, according to Maryam.

When approached, Pakistan Bar Council member Abid Saqi said that video recording is admissible as evidence, and a court would order forensic verification to determine veracity of any video proof.

He said that the Punjab accountability court judges’ affairs are supervised by the Lahore High Court and the LHC chief can launch inquiry if some allegation is leveled against a judge.

Regarding the validity of the sentence awarded by the judge to the former prime minister in the reference, the PBC member said that the Supreme Court could take up the matter and launch an inquiry to find out the reality.

However, Mr Saqi was of the view that Nawaz Sharif had been convicted on the basis of inadmissible evidence as well as statements of proxy witnesses that are not permissible in the eye of law.

Supreme Court lawyer Syed Kazim Bukhar told The Nation that if the video is genuine, it should be presented as evidence before the Islamabad High Court bench, which is hearing Nawaz’s appeal.

Syed Hassan Abbas Advocate said that as justice should not only be done but seen to have been done, the prime responsibility of a judge should be to demonstrate before the public an image of justice.

When contacted, an LHC official said that the LHC chief justice has power to launch inquiry on a complaint or by taking notice where some allegations are leveled against a judge. However, he said, at first the Sharif family should file the evidence on the issue before the IHC in the appeal.

After the submission of the video record, he said, the IHC may send the video record for its forensic verification and may also summon the judge and seek his written statement on the allegations.

Afterwards, the LHC official said, the IHC may refer the case to the Lahore High Court chief justice for further action. In the meanwhile, he added, the judge may be made an officer on special duty.