Pakistan’s Supreme Court will decide today if Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has to quit over corruption allegations, as a drawn-out investigation related to the “Panama Papers” leaks approach conclusion. Mr Sharif, 67, has denied any wrongdoing, but the Supreme Court agreed to investigate his family’s offshore wealth late last year after opposition leader Imran Khan threatened street protests.
The court. It could clear the Prime Minister, or order a further judicial commission of inquiry or even declare him ineligible to hold office, as it did in 2012 with then-Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani over a contempt of court case.
In case if Mr Sharif is disqualified, his party would remain in power, but the move could cause intense turmoil at a time when Pakistan is in the midst of problematic relations with India and as its civilian government and powerful military appear to have come to uneasy terms. The general election must be held by next year.
The controversy erupted with the publication of the so-called Panama Papers last year; 11.5 million secret documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world’s rich and powerful.
Among the global elite implicated were three of Mr Sharif’s four children — his daughter and presumptive political heir Maryam, and his two sons.At the heart of the matter is the legitimacy of the funds used by the Sharif family to purchase several high-end London properties via offshore companies.
