ISLAMABAD  -  Accountability Court-III Judge Abida Sajjad will announce the reserved judgment in the Toshakhana Reference against Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari, Yousaf Raza Gillani and others on October 14 on whether the reference will become dormant or returned to NAB or it is to be transferred to another forum.

A reference was filed in Accountability Court in 2020 where former premiers, along with Abdul Ghani Majid and Abdul Majid, were accused of buying cars from Toshkahana, and using illegal modes of payments for the purchase of cars.

Judge Abida Sajjad presided over the hearing at Federal Judicial Complex Islamabad on Wednesday. On the last hearing, she had ordered NAB and the counsels of the accused to submit their final arguments in the court regarding why AC lacks jurisdiction after the Supreme Court’s September 6 ruling where the amendments in the National Accountability Ordinance 1999 were restored.

Deputy Prosecutor General NAB Azhar Maqbool submitted in the court that the case against Nawaz Sharif should be sent back to NAB, and it should be made dormant against Asif Zardari and remaining accused since Asif Zardari has presidential immunity. The DPG also submitted that the AC has no jurisdiction in the said case since the reference doesn’t hold a threshold of Rs500 million. He also argued in the court that the case against Asif Zardari and others must be transferred to FIA.

Farooq H. Naik, counsel for Asif Zardari, submitted in the court that this reference is beyond the domain of NAB; this case was returned to NAB earlier as well when the NAB amendments were announced. The case should be sent back to Chairman NAB, where he’ll decide whether to send the case to the tribunal or any other forum; this court can only send it back now, said Naik. The case will become dormant wherever it’s transferred but this court cannot make the case dormant.

Advocate Misbah ul Hassan, counsel for Nawaz Sharif, argued before the court that the order of 21-12-2022 prevails today, which said AC has no jurisdiction in the matter, and it was returned to NAB; the case was sent back to NAB in the light of CJP Bandial’s judgment, and it must be the case now as well.

The DPG NAB took some of his arguments back regarding 512 CrPC which were questioned by the defence lawyers. Judge Abida Sajjad will announce the reserved judgment on October 14.