News Analysis |
The daughter of the ousted Prime Minister Maryam Nawaz has said that ‘she is willing to go to prison’. Maryam Nawaz was talking to reporters when she said that the path she has chosen is difficult. When asked if she is ready to go to prison, she remarked: “I am absolutely ready”. Maryam Nawaz also advised her supporters not to be worried about her. “There is nothing to be scared of. Once you have picked up this flag of a work which no one has done in last 70 years, there is a price we have to pay and we are paying currently,” she said.
“There is a cost which one must pay and I am aware of it,” Maryam added.
Verdict on 6th July
The accountability court is all set to announce the verdict in Avenfield Properties reference against Sharif family on July 6.
The Avenfield reference was among those filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz, sons Hassan and Hussain Nawaz, and son-in-law retired captain Mohammad Safdar on Supreme Court’s orders given during the Panamagate case which disqualified Sharif.
Maryam may not be able to come out as political winner of the game at the end of the story. Her journey from non-declaration of assets to ownership of millions of rupees has considerably damaged her political repute in Pakistan.
The NAB prosecutor has stated before the accountability court that Nawaz Sharif had acquired four apartments in Avenfield House, Park Lane, London. Sharif family insists that they had purchased the apartments through ‘legitimate’ financial resources. However, they have remained unable to present those resources before the accountability court or the Supreme Court. This created serious challenge for the entire Sharif family at both political and legal fronts.
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Maryam Owns Assets Worth Millions
PML-N faced severe criticism on social and electronic media when the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) shared data on electoral candidates’ assets. Maryam Nawaz, daughter of the ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had always declined to admit that she owned anything in Pakistan or abroad, owns assets worth Rs845 million.
Maryam Nawaz who always claimed that she ‘lived at her father’s house’ and has no property or any other business, has also spent Rs6.4 million on foreign trips within the last three years, her asset details show. According to Maryam’s affidavit, her net assets—as recorded on June 30 for the financial year 2017—amounted to Rs845 million.
Maryam Nawaz also advised her supporters not to be worried about her. “There is nothing to be scared of. Once you have picked up this flag of a work which no one has done in last 70 years, there is a price we have to pay and we are paying currently,” she said.
Moreover, Maryam Nawaz is a shareholder in the Hamza Spinning Mills Limited, Chaudhry Sugar Mills Limited, Muhammad Buksh Textile Mills Limited, Hudaibiya Papers Mills Limited and Hudaibiya Engineering Co Private Limited.
In addition to holding shares in a number of companies, she is currently the owner of 1,506 kanal of agricultural land, a figure reached by an increase of 548 kanals within the last three years. The former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s daughter also invested Rs3.4 million in a family flour mill and was given a loan worth Rs20 million by her brother Hassan Nawaz.
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Future of Maryam Nawaz
Maryam Nawaz is apparently underestimating the role of expected verdict of the accountability court in Pakistan. There was a specific time and context when Benazir Bhutto and other politicians who were victimized for political interests got popularity and became charismatic leaders at the end of the day. Maryam Nawaz and her family have been indicted after a through process of investigation which also included experts.
Maryam Nawaz who always claimed that she ‘lived at her father’s house’ and has no property or any other business, has also spent Rs6.4 million on foreign trips within the last three years, her asset details show.
Maryam may not be able to come out as political winner of the game at the end of the story. Her journey from non-declaration of assets to ownership of millions of rupees has considerably damaged her political repute in Pakistan. Moreover, there is a widening rift within the Sharif family between Nawaz Sharif and his younger brother and the current president of the party Shehbaz Sharif over the nature of politics being done by the former.
Read more: Maryam Nawaz leaves NA-125 alone
If Nawaz Sharif and his daughter go to prison for some legally valid points, it is likely that Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza will try their best to politically sideline the former first family. The verdict may help the younger Sharif to make his way and prove Nawaz and his daughter politically irrelevant.