Nawaz Sharif leaves for London to visit ailing wife

Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam left for London from Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport on 5 December after he was granted an exemption for a week from appearing in the court for corruption references filed against him in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) court.

The accountability court, hearing corruption references against Nawaz Sharif on Monday, granted him a week long exemption from hearing for a week but rejected Maryam's request for exemption from appearance earlier as she had already received such an exemption from November 15 to December 15, which was still intact.

The Pakistan Supreme Court had asked the NAB to file references against the Sharif family in connection with their Avenfield and other properties on July 28 and directed the trial court to decide the references within six months.

Nawaz is facing three corruption references in the accountability court filed by NAB as per the directions of the apex court.

Sharif will remain in London for five days where his wife Begum Kulsoom Nawaz is undergoing a treatment for cancer, the Dawn reported.

Kulsoom has undergone three operations for lymphoma recently for which she was diagnosed this year.

She had also won the crucial NA-120 by-poll in Lahore after the seat fell vacant following the disqualification of then prime minister Nawaz Sharif by the Supreme Court in Panama papers case. 

-ANI