- Arshad Malik barred from serving as Accountability Judge
ISLAMABAD, July 12: Accountability judge Arshad Malik has claimed that he was offered a Rs500 million cash bribe by the son of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Hussain Nawaz, who demanded that the judge resign on the grounds that he “could no longer deal with the guilt of having convicted” Nawaz under duress in the Al-Azizia/Hill Metal Establishment reference.
In an affidavit submitted to the Islamabad High Court chief justice, the judge claimed that he was offered bribes and threatened with dire consequences by PML-N representatives initially to force him into issuing verdicts in favour of Nawaz in the Al-Azizia and Flagship Investments references, and later to coerce him into resigning from his office.
The judge claimed that in early 2018, an acquaintance named Nasir Janjua, who was associated with the PML-N, “implored” him to issue verdicts of acquittal in the Al-Azizia and Flagship references, saying that it was on his personal recommendation to then prime minister Nawaz Sharif that he (Malik) was appointed as judge in the accountability court.
During the arguments stage of the references’ trial, the judge said he was again approached by Janjua with a “financial offer” from Nawaz of Rs100 million but that he refused the offer.
The offer was shortly followed by a “thinly veiled threat of physical harm and intimidation” by Nasir Butt, the PML-N ‘sympathiser’ who recorded the video shared by Maryam that started the controversy, the judge claimed.
“The threat was delivered by Nasir Butt saying to me in an intimidating tone that he owed Mian Nawaz Sharif a lot, as he (Nawaz) had helped him avoid punishment for 4-5 murders committed by him (Butt) by using his immense political influence and, therefore, he (Butt) was willing to go to any extent to help [Nawaz] in the trials he was facing,” judge Malik claimed.
He said when he refused to accept the bribes and give in to the alleged threats, “manipulated” video clips were screened by PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz at a press conference in which she claimed the judge had confessed to have been “pressured and blackmailed” into issuing a verdict against Nawaz.
Later, tThe law ministry on Friday barred Arshad Malik from serving as an accountability court judge after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) requested his removal over the Videogate scandal.
Addressing a press conference, Law Minister Farogh Naseem and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Accountability Shahzad Akbar said judge Arshad Malik has been told to report back to the Lahore High Court (LHC).
The law minister clarified that the Al-Azizia sentence will not be overturned unless the IHC decides the verdict was issued under duress.
The announcement came as the PML-N raised calls for the Al-Azizia sentence to be set aside and Nawaz Sharif’s immediate release.
“Barring the judge does not have any impact on his verdicts,” Naseem said, adding the government would not tolerate any attempts to intimidate the judiciary.
On Malik’s claims of being threatened and offered bribes, the law minister said there will be legal action against anyone who tries to intimidate or blackmail judges.
The minister asserted that the judge, in his affidavit, has reiterated that the verdict against Nawaz Sharif was delivered without any pressure or fear.
Earlier on Friday, the IHC approached the law ministry to remove accountability court judge Arshad Malik from his position.
According to official sources, the request was conveyed to Law Minister Naseem in a letter sent by IHC Registrar Irshad Kiyani on the orders of acting IHC Chief Justice Amir Farooq.
The development came after Malik met Justice Farooq earlier on Friday, their third meeting this week.-Agencies
