Offshore Leaks Record

Pakistan ยท Panama Papers

Nawaz Sharif: offshore leaks and what happened next

Cleared Sharif was disqualified as prime minister by the Supreme Court in 2017. The Islamabad High Court acquitted him in the Avenfield reference on 29 November 2023 and in the Al-Azizia reference on 12 December 2023.2,3,5

Being named in a leak is not evidence of wrongdoing, and owning an offshore company can be legal. Each record sets out what was reported, the person's response, and what official action, if any, followed.

What was reported

ICIJ reported that the children of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif owned London real estate through companies created by Mossack Fonseca, and clarified that the children, not the prime minister, controlled the companies.1

Response

ICIJ reported that representatives for Sharif did not respond to requests for comment. Sharif later maintained that the London assets were legally held by his children, Al Jazeera reported.1,2

What happened afterwards

  1. Court ruled, Supreme Court of PakistanA five member bench disqualified Sharif from office over his failure to disclose his stake in the UAE company Capital FZE in his wealth declarations, and referred him and three of his children to an accountability court. He stepped down the same day, saying he had serious differences with the verdict, Al Jazeera reported.2
  2. Convicted, Accountability Court, Islamabad (National Accountability Bureau reference)The trial court sentenced Sharif to 10 years in jail and an 8 million pound fine in the Avenfield reference over London apartments, Geo News reported.3
  3. Convicted, Accountability Court, Islamabad (National Accountability Bureau reference)An accountability court sentenced him to seven years in the separate Al-Azizia Steel Mills reference, Geo News reported.3
  4. Acquitted, Islamabad High CourtA division bench of Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb acquitted Sharif in the Avenfield reference, overturning the 2018 conviction. Sharif said he had left the matter up to God.3,4,5
  5. Acquitted, Islamabad High CourtThe same bench of Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb acquitted Sharif in the Al-Azizia reference, about two weeks after the Avenfield acquittal, Dawn reported.5

Sources

  1. ICIJ, Giant Leak of Offshore Financial Records Exposes Global Array of Crime and Corruption (3 April 2016)
  2. Al Jazeera, Pakistan Supreme Court disqualifies Nawaz Sharif (28 July 2017)
  3. Geo News, IHC acquits Nawaz Sharif in Avenfield reference (29 November 2023)
  4. The Tribune (PTI), Pakistan high court acquits Nawaz Sharif in corruption case (PTI) (29 November 2023)
  5. Dawn, Nawaz clears another legal hurdle in way of elections, secures acquittal from IHC in Al-Azizia case (12 December 2023)