Hamza Shehbaz denied bail in money laundering case

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday denied bail to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Hamza Shehbaz in relation to the money laundering case.

While hearing the case today, the court remarked that Hamza had failed to give satisfactory answers about his sources of income.

During the hearing, the petitioner's counsel stated that money laundering laws do not apply to Hamza as they were introduced after accusations were made against him.

Hamza's counsel said the money in question was transferred into his accounts before anti-money laundering laws were introduced.

He recalled that the first ordinance against money laundering was introduced in 2007, which lapsed in 90 days. The second ordinance was introduced in 2009, and the actual law against money laundering was introduced in 2010.

The court remarked that if it accepts the applicant’s point of view, the anti-money laundering law will be rendered completely redundant.

During the arguments, the court noted that Hamza's father, former chief minister Punjab Shehbaz Sharif, was a three-time public office holder, to which Hamza replied that he himself was not once in any such position.

Hamza’s lawyer contended that every detail had been provided in the accused's income tax returns.

When the court inquired regarding the increase in Hamza’s account over the years, the NAB prosecutor said that until 2018, there was an increase of around Rs417 million rupees.

On February 6, the LHC had granted Hamza bail in the Ramzan Sugar Mills case.

Shehbaz had been indicted in the sugar mills case, along with his father Shehbaz Sharif, on April 9 last year.

In his petition for bail, filed through counsel Amjad Pervaiz, the PML-N leader had alleged that the accountability bureau had initiated an inquiry into Ramzan Sugar Mills with malicious intentions.