In a major relief to Nawaz Sharif ahead of elections, a top Pakistani court yesterday acquitted the former prime minister in the Avenfield corruption case, removing a major obstacle for him to run in parliamentary elections in February. His acquittal in another case was maintained, after an appeal by the anti-graft body challenging it, was withdrawn.<br />''<br />''A two-member Islamabad High Court bench comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb announced the verdict after hearing the appeal filed by Sharif against his conviction in the Avenfield corruption case, in which he was sentenced to 10 years' jail in 2018.<br />''<br />''Sharif, who served as Prime Minister three times, returned to Pakistan in October, after four years of self-exile abroad to avoid serving out the prison sentence on corruption charges.<br />