Court hands lengthy terms to Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi in £190 million case
In a big blow to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on Friday, jailed former prime minister Imran Khan was sentenced to 14 years and his wife seven years in jail in the £190 million Al Qadir Trust case as the accountability court found both suspects guilty of corruption.
Accountability Court judge, Justice Nasir Javed Rana, announced the reserved judgement by 11:45. It was scheduled to be announced at 11:30am.
The case heard in an accountability court was adjourned three times. After hearing closing arguments on December 18, 2024, the judge, Justice Nasir Javed Rana, reserved the judgement.
Originally scheduled for December 23, the decision was postponed to January 6, January 13, and January 17 (today).
The PTI founder has been fined Rs1 million while Bushra Bibi has received a fine of Rs500,000.
Following the verdict, Bibi was arrested in the courtroom. The legal proceedings have garnered significant attention as they increase the legal woes of Khan and his wife.
Khan’s wife was arrested in the court.
Judge Rana warned that failure to pay fines would result in an additional six months sentence for the PTI founder and three months for Bibi.
The court has ordered the seizure of Al-Qadir Trust University, placing it under the custody of the federal government.
According to the court order, the PTI founder was sentenced under Section 10-A (Punishment for Corruption and Corrupt Practices) of the NAB Ordinance 1999.
“A person who commits the offence of corruption and corrupt practices shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 14 years, or with fine, or with both, and such of the assets and property of such person which is found to be disproportionate to the known sources of his income or which is acquired by money obtained through corruption and corrupt practices whether in his name or in the name of any of his dependents, or benamidars shall be liable to be forfeited to the appropriate Government,” states Section 10-A (Punishment for Corruption and Corrupt Practices) of the NAB Ordinance 1999.
In reaction, Khan’s lawyer said that the legal team would challenge the decision in higher courts and labelled the development a “dark day” for the rule of law.
Last hearing
In the last hearing, Judge Rana expressed his concerns over the non-appearance of the legal teams of the two suspects even though he was in the court from 8:30am, reports said. The decision was announced at 10:40am. The decision was announced an hour after a district court in Islamabad rejected the bail applications of Khan’s wife.
In reaction to the development, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Gohar Ali Khan clarified that the postponement of the verdict in the case against Khan and his wife Bibi was not the “result of any deal.”
On Thursday, the PTI negotiation committee presented its written demands to the government committee in the third round of talks in Islamabad.
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 posting anti-army chief social media posts.
Background
Khan and his wife Bibi are accused of entering into a secret agreement with a property tycoon through former PM’s aide Shahzad Akbar prior to the transfer of £190 million to Pakistan.
Also, read this
Khan criticises delay in £190 million case verdict as ‘pressure tactic’
PTI Chairman Gohar, KP CM Gandapur hold ‘one-on-one’ meeting with COAS Munir
No political issues discussed between COAS and PTI, security sources say
The former prime minister allegedly used his influence to secure approval for the agreement from the federal cabinet. Akbar purportedly signed a confidentiality deed with the National Crime Agency on December 6, 2019.
On March 24, 2021, Bibi allegedly assisted the PTI founder by signing documents as a trustee for Al-Qadir University. Khan allegedly facilitated the amount through “illegal and dishonest means,” using the Supreme Court’s account by declaring the amount as a government asset via the secret agreement.
Moreover, both suspects allegedly acquired 240 kanals of land in Mohra Noor, Islamabad, through Farhat Shehzadi. They have been found involved in “corrupt practices.”
For the latest news, follow us on Twitter @Aaj_Urdu. We are also on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Comments are closed on this story.