Lawyer presents closing arguments for Sharif co-accused

Lawyer presents closing arguments for Sharif co-accused
ASSOCIATED PRESS

KARACHI, MARCH 29: The defence lawyer for a co-accused in the hijacking trial of deposed premier Nawaz Sharif hammered away Wednesday at apparent contradictions in testimony from prosecution witnesses.

Manzoor Malik presented closing arguments for former southern Sindh provincial police chief, Rana Maqbool, who faces charges of hijacking, terrorism, attempted murder and kidnapping along with Sharif and five other accused.

The men have pleaded not guilty. If convicted they could face the death sentence. The trial which has been going on for more than a month is expected to conclude this week. The verdict however is not expected until next week.

The men are charged with refusing to allow the aircraft carrying Pak Army chief General Pervez Musharraf to land in souther Karachi on October 12 last year.

The refusal came after Sharif dismissed Musharraf and replaced him with a junior general. Musharraf's dismissal caused a revolt in the Army, which seized power.

Sharif and his colleagues were arrested and the aircraft which had been circling over Karachi for more than an hour was allowed to land. It touched down with barely seven minutes of fuel left, according to testimony.