Advocate Salman Akram Raja. Photo: File  

ISLAMABAD: The decision of the Supreme Court to reject all appeals by the Sharif family and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar against the Panama Papers verdict will have a far-reaching effect on several areas, including electoral laws. 

This was stated by Advocate Salman Akram Raja, who represented Nawaz Sharif's children and son-in-law in the high-profile case. 

Talking to Geo News while exiting the apex court after the court's decision, Raja said that although review petitions hardly make a substantial difference in the original verdicts, he felt his client's petition had grounds to call for a review. 

He did not comment when asked if his clients will appear before the accountability court on September 19 when the Sharif children and son-in-law have been summoned with regards to several references filed against them by the National Accountability Bureau. 

Review petitions dismissed

Earlier today, the five-member bench of the Supreme Court dismissed all review pleas after the petitioners' counsels wrapped up their arguments earlier.

The Supreme Court's judgment in the Panama Papers case had resulted in then premier Nawaz Sharif's disqualification and filing of monitored and time bound corruption cases against them.

Reading out the short-order, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, who headed the five-member bench, remarked that the court will share reasons for dismissal of the petitions later.

The bench was headed by Justice Khosa and comprised Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed and Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan ? who along with the latter two headed the special implementation bench in the Panama case that oversaw the work of the Joint Investigation Team.

The bench began hearing the petitions on Wednesday after it was decided a day earlier to approve the Sharif family's plea for the formation of a larger bench to hear the petitions rather than the earlier notified three-member bench.

After today's decision, the Sharif family and Dar will have to seek justice in the Islamabad Accountability Court, where three references against the Sharif family and one against the finance minister have been filed.

Members of the Sharif family have been summoned by the accountability court on September 19 and Dar on September 20.