Pakistan fails to execute Nawaz Sharif's arrest warrant in UK
Oct 04, 2020
London [UK], October 4 : Pakistan has failed to execute a non-bailable arrest warrant against former Prime Minister and PML (N) supremo Nawaz Sharif, who was granted permission to fly abroad to get medical treatment in November last year.
The British government has informed Pakistani officials that they will not get involved in "its internal political matters," The News International, reported.
This development comes after several attempts were made by the Pakistan government over a period of nearly a month to get Sharif's arrest warrant signed. According to the Pakistan daily, country's diplomats stationed in London also asked the British government to help execute the arrest warrants, however, the government bluntly refused.
Earlier this week, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had slammed Sharif over his failure to appear before the court after permission was granted to fly abroad to get medical treatment in November last year.
"Accused [Sharif] knows that he went abroad after defeating the system. He must be laughing at the system while sitting abroad. It's shameful conduct by the accused," Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani of the IHC was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan had tasked relevant authorities to bring back Sharif at the earliest. The decision was taken during a cabinet meeting where the PM also issued the directive to pursue the matter vigorously.
A cabinet member had told Dawn the government had already sent a request to the British government for the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) leader's repatriation but it would now send a fresh application.
Last month, the IHC came down heavily on the Imran Khan-led government that it allowed Sharif to go abroad without informing the court and it was up to the dispensation to take steps for ensuring the latter's return to the country.
Additional Attorney General Tariq Mehmood Khokhar had told a bench comprising Justices Aamer Farooq and Mohsin Akhtar Kayani that Pakistan's Foreign Office implemented the court-issued non-bailable arrest warrants without delay through the Pakistan High Commission in the UK on September 17, Geo News reported.
