Shehbaz Sharif says the ‘favourite’s’ sentence has been suspended, not terminated

LONDON/ISLAMABAD, August 29 (SABAH): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President and former prime minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday slammed the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Jusitce Umar Ata Bandial for “favouring” Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended the sentence awarded to him in the Toshakhana case.

The IHC verdict on Tuesday comes as a major legal victory for Imran Khan who was sentenced to three years in jail and fined Rs100,000 in the Toshakhana case by Additional Districts and Sessions Judge Dilawar Humayun — after finding him guilty of corrupt practices related to the state gift repository — in a move that barred him from contesting elections due later this year.

In his message on X, formerly Twitter, the former premier also wrote that the IHC had been influenced by the apex court’s leniency toward the PTI chief. “The ‘favourite’s’ sentence has been suspended, not terminated.

“Chief Justice’s message of ‘Good to see you and ‘Wishing you good luck’ reached Islamabad High Court. If everyone knows what the decision will be before the decision comes, it should be a moment of concern for the justice system,” the former premier wrote.

He further stated that when a “clear message” was received from the higher judiciary, the subordinate court would follow suit.

“A monitoring judge was appointed to ensure Nawaz Sharif’s punishment, [and now] the chief justice himself [has become] a monitoring judge to save the ‘favourite’,” he wrote, slamming the courts for giving Khan relief.

Taking issue with the overturning of the sentence, Shehbaz Sharif’s tweet further read: “This role of the justice system will be written as the dark chapter of history. Scales tilted to one side and a justice system that undermines justice are not acceptable.

He wrote that the law was powerless before those who “sold the watches”.

“If thieves and state terrorists are facilitated, where will the common man get justice in the country?”

The former premier also lamented that Khan and his party were given undue leniency by the courts.

“Be it May 9, be it an attack on the judicial complex, be it raining petrol bombs on the police, everything is forgiven,” he concluded.

PML-N leader and former law minister Senator Chaudhry Azam Nazeer Tarar said that the detailed verdict had not been released. He said that the IHC had only suspended the sentence as that was the matter pending before it. “This was a short sentence. Ordinarily, sentences are suspended,” he said.

He asserted that Imran’s disqualification had not ended. “This is only suspension of sentence which means that he be set free in this case if he is not wanted or arrested in another. Apart from this, there is no other definition or meaning of suspension of sentence. Neither his punishment nor his qualification have been ended or even the declaration that he was dishonest.”

At the same time, Tarar said that he did not wish to comment further as the detailed verdict had not been released. He said that the suspension of the sentence could be challenged, again reiterating that the detailed reasons had not been issued.

In a post on twitter, former interior minister and PML-N Punjab President Rana Sanaullah Khan said, “He [Imran] will not come outside [of the jail] — release is not possible, [he] will have to face the prosecution in other cases!”

Meanwhile Zahid Khan, a senior leader of Awami National Party (ANP) which was part of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government, termed the IHC verdict as “murder of justice”.

Slamming the IHC verdict, suspending the sentence of Imran Khan’s verdict, Zahid Khan said, “Why humanity does not wake up in the heart in other cases?” He added that Khan had stolen and there was concrete proof of the “theft”, yet he was being given special treatment. He further slammed the courts for making “wrong decisions”.

“The nation is crying on the streets today because of the wrong decisions of the courts. If there is no writ of the state, how can people live in it?” he asked.

The ANP leader termed the IHC decision as “an unprecedented wrong decision” and said if the courts had not made decisions by “looking at social media,” there may have been justice in the country.

“Criticizing the [court’s] decision is our right. We don’t abuse [the court],” he said.

Meanwhile reacting to the development in the Toshkhana case, PDM spokesperson Hafiz Hamdullah speculated if the suspension of Khan’s conviction was a result of PTI chief’s wife Bushra Bibi’s meetings with a dignitary from a “friendly Muslim country”.

“Why is Bushra Bibi seeking an NRO [a reference to relief in cases] from a friendly Islamic country? Why did she meet an important personality of an Islamic country in a five-star hotel in Islamabad?” he questioned.

Hamdullah said Bushra Bibi told the “personality” that Khan is ready to leave the country.

“Today, I will tell the whole nation that PTI chairman is now begging to go out [of the country],” the PDM spokesperson said.

Meanwhile Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party Spokesperson Fayyazul Hassan Chohan reacted to the IHC verdict by saying that the IHC chief justice has “won the hearts” of the PTI chairman and party workers.

“We hope that now Justice Aamer Farooq will not become a victim of bad language from the PTI chairman and his workers.” He further said that Khan and his party workers will now remain indebted to the judge.

“[We hope] that the PTI chairman and workers will be in the favour of Justice Aamir Farooq. After [his verdict today], he will be declared a good and honest judge for the PTI,” he remarked.