'Court of masses' has already given verdict on Panama Leaks, says Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Wednesday that the Panama Leaks case decision would be the most important in the history of Pakistan.

Speaking to the media after PTI's consultative meeting ahead of the announcement of the verdict, he said that the party's lawyers have said in detail whatever needed to be said on the case, and the people of Pakistan have already given their verdict on the matter.

“The Panama issue would have died if the PTI leadership and its workers had not taken a firm stance against it,” he said. “PTI has always made it clear that it doesn’t intend to derail the system but rather want to press forward accountability in the system.”

Qureshi said that media has also played a remarkable role in keeping the Panama issue relevant.

He said that the PML-N believed the Panama issue will die soon but millions of people became part of the movement against corruption in the country.

“The people of Pakistan made impossible, possible.”

“Corruption is an issue of masses. People have to give credit to the PTI for putting up efforts on this case for more than a year. The Supreme Court listened to every party and took time in concluding the case.”

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chaired the PML-N’s consultative meeting.

According to sources, the prime minister told PML-N leaders that he was not waiting for any decision and was elected by people to work. “I am working and will continue to work. Whatever decision is taken by the court, InshaAllah would be better,” the prime minister was quoted by sources as saying.

Prime Minister Sharif told those attending the meeting that elections in Pakistan will be held as per schedule in 2018.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Khursheed Shah opined the Panama case that it was a testing time for the judges on the apex court bench who had heard the case.

Referring to decisions from the last 70 years, he said the country had witnessed several key apex court verdicts "from Justice Muneer to Anwarul Haq", but the world today was not the same.

"The world appears to be a global village now. It has shrunk, and nothing can be hidden anymore. The situation today is very different. This decision can either strengthen the state or weaken it as well," he said while talking to media in the parliament house.