The postponement of the verdict in the £190 million Al Qadir Trust case against jailed former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi was not the “result of any deal,” Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Gohar Ali Khan said on Monday.

“Before entering the jail, we were told at the gate that the judge had entered the January 17 date for announcing the verdict,” he told reporters outside the jail.

It was the third time that the accountability court judge postponed the announcement of the verdict in the case, which the PTI believes is “politically motivated”.

The development comes amid Khan’s party’s negotiations with the government committee to bring the “political temperature” down.

On Sunday, PTI leaders met with their leaders after a long time. They confirmed that the third round of talks would be held where Khan’s side would present written demands to the government.

“The Al Qadir Trust case is politically motivated and its purpose is to force him to compromise. His wife was included in the case to pressure him,” Gohar said and claimed that the PTI founder did not benefit from the case.

“We were ready to hear the judgement,” he said.

The delay in announcing the £190 million case judgement was not because of any foreign pressure or relief, anchorperson Javed Chaudhry said on Saturday.

“The delay in decision is for someone else with whom the state is engaging. They have no link to Khan. There is a space created so that those people should decide where they want to head,” he said while appearing on Rubaroo which was aired on Aaj News.

But the columnist warned that the decision would be announced if the jailed former PM kept on posting anti-army chief social media posts.

‘No link to negotiations’

PTI General Secretary Salman Akram Raja, who accompanied Gohar, clarified that the court development was not because of the negotiations with the government.

“We have heard the third round of talks will be held on January 15, but if someone wants to imply that the verdict [in the Al Qadir Trust case] was delayed because of the ongoing talks is wrong,” he said and added that the party would not sign any deal to release Khan from the jail.

“We will fight the legal battles like we have in the past. We are holding talks for democracy and the supreme of law. We are not seeking ease,” Raja said, “the talks and the case have no links.”

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When asked about the postponement of the verdict for the third time, Raja said that there was an attempt to imply that a deal was being reached between the two sides.

PTI Chairman Gohar said that Khan’s wife was scheduled to reach the jail and two cases would be heard in the prison.

He expressed his hope that the Supreme Court would serve justice in the cases against Khan. “I want to clarify that Khan has not benefited in this [Al Qadir Trust] case and this has been admitted by witnesses. Still, no application from the state is pending in court.”