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Pakistani Opposition Leader Expects High Court Inquiry To Topple Sharif


Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan (front and center, file photo)
Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan (front and center, file photo)

Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan says he expects Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to be ousted by a Supreme Court investigation into corruption charges.

"Hopefully within this month...we will see the end of the dark night of the Sharifs," Khan, the former star cricketer, told tens of thousands of supporters on November 2.

The high court's decision on November 1 to set up a judicial commission to look into corruption allegations against Sharif involving his children's alleged offshore companies, led Khan to call off a planned mass demonstration in Islamabad that he said would shut down the capital.

Khan decided instead to hold a "celebratory" rally on the outskirts of Islamabad where he criticized Sharif and his younger brother Shahbaz, the chief minister of Punjab Province.

WATCH: Opposition Cheers Corruption Investigation Faced By Sharif

Opposition Cheers Corruption Investigation Faced By Pakistani PM
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He also said the two are responsible for provoking clashes between police and supporters of his Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaf party.

The Supreme Court is due to hold its first hearing on the corruption charges against the Sharifs on November 3.

Sharif and his family deny any wrongdoing and there is no mention in the so-called Panama Papers investment scandal of the prime minister owning any offshore companies.

Khan said in May that he himself had used an offshore company to avoid paying British taxes on the sale of a London property.

Based on reporting by Reuters

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