LHC reserves verdict on Maryam's bail plea in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case.

Byline: Rana Bilal

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday reserved its verdict on a bail plea filed by PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills (CSM) case after the petitioner and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) concluded their arguments.

The PML-N vice president had approached the high court on September 30 seeking post-arrest bail in the case, which is being investigated by NAB. Following the sudden deterioration in the health of her father, Nawaz Sharif, she then filed a miscellaneous petition on October 24 seeking immediate bail on the basis of fundamental rights and humanitarian reasons.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Ali Baqar Najafi and Justice Sardar Ahmad Naeem heard the petitions today. During the proceedings, NAB's counsel Jahanzaib Bharwana opposed Maryam's request for bail on humanitarian grounds and said: "It has been established by Supreme Court's verdicts that a suspect can only be granted bail in extraordinary circumstances.

Maryam Nawaz's case does not qualify as an extraordinary one.

"The jail superintendent had allowed Maryam Nawaz to meet her father," Bharwana argued.

In a previous hearing of the appeal, the court had asked Maryam's counsel if she had been granted permission to meet her ailing father Nawaz Sharif, to which her lawyer, Azam Nazir Tarar, responded in the affirmative.

The former premier was rushed to Services Institute of Medical Sciences (SIMS) last week after his personal physician raised alarm about his deteriorating health. He is currently admitted at the hospital.

During today's hearing, NAB's lawyer said that Maryam had played an "important role in money laundering" and added that a hefty amount of money was...