ISLAMABAD - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Wednesday removed objections raised by the registrar office over fresh application of PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz seeking annulment of her conviction in the Avenfield Apartment reference.

A two-member bench of IHC comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani conducted hearing of Maryam and her husband Captain (retired) Muhammad Safdar’s appeals against their conviction and it also heard an application of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) seeking hearing of their appeals on daily basis. The bench overruled the objections of IHC registrar office over the application moved by Maryam. However, it would decide maintainability of the application on the next hearing scheduled for October 13.

During the hearing, Maryam along with her counsel Irfan Qadir appeared before the bench and dispelled impression that PML-N leader was against armed forces. Qadir said that a misunderstanding was being spread since yesterday. The counsel further said that he wanted to clarify that armed forces and security agencies were the best in the world. Similarly, judges are great too, except in a few political matters. He added that they were not against individuals but certain mindsets that silence democracy in Pakistan. He also stated that they moved the fresh application to bring forth certain facts that happened after the conviction in the Avenfield case.

Where is Panama JIT now? asks Maryam

While addressing Qadir, Justice Aamer said that NAB had also filed a petition seeking day to day hearing and conclusion of the case within a month. The counsel said that the anti-graft watchdog’s application for hearing the appeals on daily basis was non-maintainable and urged the court to dismiss it.  Later, the bench overruled registrar office two objections and deferred the proceedings till October 13 for further proceedings.

Taking to the journalists after hearing, Maryam Nawaz questioned silence of the NAB and the Supreme Court on the Pandora Papers leaks. She asked that where the petitioner was who took the Panama case to court. She added that the entire nation was looking for that petitioner and the Panama JIT.

She said that why the anti-corruption spirit is not visible today.

The PML-N leader termed her sentence in the Avenfield case politically engineered. She said that case against Sharifs was completely baseless. In response to some media reports that Maryam Nawaz “maligned” the state institutions, she said that the state institutions of Pakistan should be above any type of controversy and suspicions.

She continued that an individual’s obedience for personal gains should not be termed as an institution. She added that institutions belong to the nation, not a single individual. When an individual tries to hide behind his institution that means he has no answers for transgressing his authority.

She also termed the extension in the tenure of NAB chief unconstitutional and illegal. She alleged that the NAB Chairperson Javed Iqbal was given the extension as a result of a deal. The PML-N leader claimed that the NAB chief was given the extension in return for action against the rivals of Prime Minister Imran. She added that this extension will be rejected by the courts.