“My innocence has been proven, but the judges who convicted me have dropped their charges one by one,” says the former prime minister
- My innocence has been proven: Nawaz Sharif, PML-N supremo.
- “A guilty conscience needs no accuser,” the former prime minister says of Ahsan.
- He vows to return “peace” to Pakistan after becoming prime minister.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif on Monday raised doubts over the premature resignation of Justice (retd) Ijazul Ahsan, saying “a guilty conscience needs no accuser”.
In a rare development, Ahsan, who was the third-ranking member of the Supreme Court and was on track to become chief justice after the retirement of incumbent CJP Qazi Faez Isa, resigned on January 11.
Ahsan's resignation, in which he mentioned that he simply did not wish to continue as a high court judge, came a day after the resignation of Justice (retd) Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, who was under the microscope over numerous allegations.
“I was innocent. The judge who was appointed to hear my cases. […] and was about to become chief justice in eight months he resigned because a guilty conscience needs no accuser,” he said during a rally in Lahore's NA-130 constituency, where he will contest the upcoming elections after being banned hold public meetings for life. the office was lifted.
Ahsan was appointed by then CJP Saqib Nisar in 2017 to oversee the proceedings of references that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was to file against Nawaz Sharif and his family members.
While securing acquittals in the corruption cases against him, just months after returning to Pakistan after ending a four-year self-exile in London, Nawaz said: “My innocence has been proven, but the judges who convicted me They have gone. office one by one.”
Nawaz rallied his supporters to ensure they voted for the PML-N in the February 8 elections and vowed that he would “leave no stone unturned” to ensure Pakistan progresses.
“There was peace when Nawaz Sharif was in power. There was no inflation and gasoline was cheap. I want to bring back that era and I want to see that peace once again in their homes,” said the PML-N supremo, who is eyeing a fourth term as prime minister.
The nationwide contest is apparently between the PML-N and its former ally the Pakistan People's Party, after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was stripped of Pakistan's “bat” electoral symbol.
