AnyTV News Pakistan Supreme Court reverses decision, Sharif government gets relief

Image Source : FILE AP
shehbaz sharif

Islamabad: In a major relief to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif-led government, the Supreme Court on Friday unanimously restored changes in the country’s anti-corruption laws that benefited several top politicians, including the prime minister and his elder brother Nawaz Sharif. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJI) Qazi Faez Isa delivered the verdict, which was reserved by a five-member bench on June 6, after hearing inter-court appeals (ICA) filed by the federal government and other parties.

The Supreme Court overturned the decision

The country’s apex court overturned an earlier decision striking down amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) laws and accepted inter-court appeals filed by the federal government and other affected parties. The previous government led by Shahbaz Sharif had amended the National Accountability Bureau laws in May 2023.

Imran Khan criticized

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party led by Imran Khan had criticised the law as it led to the withdrawal of corruption cases against leaders like Asif Ali Zardari, Shahbaz Sharif and his brother Nawaz Sharif. Former Prime Minister Khan had challenged these amendments in the Supreme Court, which annulled these changes in September last year.

The court made an important comment

According to the court’s recent decision, it ruled unanimously in favour of the appeal and restored the amendments that were earlier declared unconstitutional. The court said that the Chief Justice and other judges “cannot be the gatekeepers of Parliament”. It said, “Whenever possible, the Supreme Court should try to uphold the law made by Parliament.” During the hearing, Khan appeared before the court through video link from Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where he has been lodged since September last year. (Language)