Impossible for any lawyer to represent me on such short notice: Nawaz
Justice rushed is justice crushed, Nawaz tells media about his trial
June 11, 2018
LAHORE: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif informed reporters on Monday of his legal counsel Khawaja Haris’s decision to recuse himself of representing the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) founder in the NAB references.
During a news conference, Nawaz said a situation was being created where he is now being denied legal counsel as well. The former prime minister told journalists, that no other defendant in a serious case has appeared 100 times before the court.
Addressing a press conference, the former premier asked, "Is it more important to complete the legal formalities or to announce the verdict before the elections?"
Sharif said that it was impossible for any lawyer to review thousands of pages of case files to satisfy the conditions in order to represent him properly.
"It is impossible for a lawyer to take on a case at this stage and begin arguments the next day. Such an environment is being created that I am deprived of a legal counsel as well," the former premier told journalists, likening the present situation to a mockery of justice.
Concluding his press conference Nawaz Sharif told journalists, "If a verdict before July 25 elections is a 'need' or a 'compulsion' then do it," adding that it would be akin to making a mockery of legal requirements, the law, human rights and judicial norms.
Earlier in the day, Nawaz's legal counsel Khawaja Haris recused himself during the Al-Azizia reference hearing. Haris said the Supreme Court had "dictated on completing the trial within a month."
On Sunday, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar had directed the accountability court to announce its verdict on all three corruption references against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family within a month.
During the hearing, Haris had petitioned for completing the trial in six weeks.
Nawaz's excuses a delaying tactic: Fawad
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokesman Fawad Chaudhry, reacting to Nawaz's press conference earlier, claimed that Khawaja Haris backtracked as a delaying tactic.
"Nawaz Sharif is making excuses to hide the [truth]. He deserves neither any relief nor any deal," Chaudhry said at a press conference in Islamabad.
PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi, sharing his thoughts on the matter, said the counsel's withdrawal was part of a strategy aimed at delaying the case proceedings.
