FAZAL SHER

ISLAMABAD: The joint investigation team (JIT) tasked with probing the Sharif family’s offshore properties grilled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law Captain Muhammad Safdar Awan (retd) for five hours on Saturday.

Safdar arrived at Federal Judicial Academy (FJA) - the JIT Secretariat - at around 11:00am amid tight security arrangements and appeared before the JIT headed by Additional Director General (DG) Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Wajid Zia.

Talking to reporters after a marathon JIT session, he said he wants to make it clear that the Panama case is not against Nawaz Sharif but against an elected prime minister “who turned Pakistan into a nuclear power on May 28, 1998, the one who made motorways and took Pakistan away from darkness and unemployment.”

The retired army officer said that the Panama Papers case is also “against the two-nation theory”. He called upon on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan to distance himself from conspiracies against the “two-nation theory” and Constitution of Pakistan; otherwise “history will not remember him in good words.”

To a question about JIT members, he said that he was treated in an appropriate manner by them.

He said he answered all the questions that were asked during the interrogation, however, he added, he could not share details of JIT proceedings as the matter is pending before the court of law.

He said he had asked the JIT members why no one was questioning the people “who have Surrey palaces and are accused of the Kargil incident. What kind of revenge your are taking from Nawaz Sharif who made Pakistan a nuclear power?”

He said that he owns a 10-marla house as his property. “He will provide money trail and all documents in this regard to the JIT,” he said while responding to another question.

Earlier, Sadar arrived at JIT accompanied by Prime Minister’s Political Secretary Asif Kirmani.

A number of PML-N workers and lawyers outside FJA raise slogans in his favour.

Earlier this week, the probing team had rejected Safdar’s application of changing the date of his hearing.