A delay in the elections for 30 to 45 days, as hinted by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan, could ensure at least the conclusion of Nawaz Sharif’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) cases before election day.
Sharif’s counsel in NAB cases Khawaja Haris is of the view that if the defence opts not to produce its witnesses, these cases will conclude by mid or late June.
He, however, added that in case the defence side produces its witnesses, these cases will further prolong for up to two months.
Haris said yesterday that the accountability court’s deadline has to be further extended as there is no possibility of concluding the cases within the present extended deadline.
Regarding the decision on whether or not to produce defence witnesses, he said that such a decision will be taken at a later stage of the case.
In view of what Haris foresees about the possible timings of the conclusion of these case, one thing has is clear is that the cases of Sharif, his daughter Maryam and her husband Muhammad Safdar Awan cannot be concluded during the tenure of the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) government, which completes its term on May 31.
And in case Sharif and his legal team decides to produce witnesses, the case duration will further be extended and may conclude sometime in August.
It means that the former prime minister’s fate will be decided after the 2018 election, when there will be a new parliament and a new government in place.
The elections, if not delayed, will be in the last week of July.
If delayed by one or one-and-a-half months as predicted by Imran Khan, the elections will be held somewhere in late August or mid-September.
In this scenario, Sharif’s cases will possibly conclude before the extended election date.
Khan in his latest interview with Geo said that the elections might be postponed for 30-45 days in view of the controversies relating to the delimitation of constituencies.
Similar apprehensions were expressed by the army chief in his recent interaction with a group of journalists.
An Urdu columnist had also claimed that the Chief Justice of Pakistan, in his interaction with him, had expressed concern about a brief delay in the election, although later the chief justice categorically stated that elections will be held on time and there would be no delay in the polls, even for a day.
Accountability Court judge Muhammad Bashir, who is trying ousted prime minister Sharif and his children in three references, is expected to seek the second extension from the Supreme Court as he had done earlier when the original six-month time limit, fixed in the July 28, 2017 judgment for deciding the references, expired.
The top court had granted two months more for wrapping up of the three references, while it extended the deadline for conclusion of a reference against former finance minister Ishaq Dar by three months.
It is also unclear whether the judge will simultaneously pronounce verdicts in all the three references or hand down his decisions at different points of time.
The accused persons have repeatedly stressed that the judgments in all the three cases should be delivered at the same time.