Islamabad:

A Pakistan court on Monday postponed for the third time the announcement of the verdict in the 190 million pounds Al-Qadir Trust corruption case against former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi.

The anti-corruption court in Islamabad has now set January 17 as the new date for announcing the verdict.

Judge Nasir Javed Rana of the anti-corruption court completed the hearing in the case on December 18 but reserved the judgment until December 23. Later he fixed January 6 as the new date for announcing the verdict, Geo News reported.

Judge Rana was on leave on January 6 so the key judgment was postponed until January 13.

Today the judge once again postponed the judgement until January 17, citing the absence of the accused in the court.

The postponement comes amidst the ongoing negotiation between the government and Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party to address the political instability in the country due to the imprisonment of the former premier and several other leaders of the party.

So far two rounds of talks have been held and another is expected this week. It was not clear if the judgment would impact the next round of talks.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in December 2023 filed the case against Khan (72), Bibi (50) and six others, accusing them of causing a loss to the tune of 190 million pounds (PRs50 billion) to the national kitty.

However, Khan and Bibi have been prosecuted as all others, including a property tycoon, were out of the country.

Both Khan and Bibi are accused in the case, which revolves around allegations that PRs50 billion, returned to Pakistan by the UK’s National Crime Agency as part of a settlement with a property tycoon was misused.

The funds were reportedly intended for the national treasury but were allegedly redirected for the personal benefit of the businessman who helped Bibi and Khan to set up a university.

Bibi, as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust, is accused of benefiting from this settlement, including acquiring 458 kanals of land for Al-Qadir University in Jhelum. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Islamabad:

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi were indicted in a new corruption case on Thursday. The case, which is the third graft reference against them, revolves around the purchase of an expensive Bulgari jewellery set at a throwaway price, Dawn reported.

This development comes just a week after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and other leaders of his party were charged in connection with the attack on the army’s General Headquarters in Rawalpindi during last year’s May 9 protests.

Although Khan was granted bail in the case by the Islamabad High Court last month, he remains in prison due to multiple charges, dating back to his arrest on August 5 last year, as per Dawn.

On Thursday, Special Court Central-I Judge Shahrukh Arjumand presided over the proceedings at Adiala Jail, where Imran was presented. Bushra Bibi, who is on bail in the case, appeared with her counsel.

PTI founder and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have denied corruption charges brought against them. Subsequently, the court summoned the prosecution witnesses on December 18 to record their testimonies.

According to Dawn, this is Imran Khan’s seventh indictment, the previous being on May 10, 2023 in the first Toshakhana case against him, in January in a second Toshakhana reference; in February in the Pakistan currency (PKR) 190 million corruption case; and recently over the GHQ attack.

While Khan’s sentences in the previous two Toshakhana cases were suspended. He was also indicted in the cipher case on December 13, 2023 and the Iddat case in January, but was later acquitted in both cases.

The trial of Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi in the PKR 190 million case has reached its final stage, with the couple testifying before an accountability court this week.

Notably, in the most recent case, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) accused the couple of retaining an expensive Bulgari jewellery set gifted by a foreign leader including a necklace, earrings, bracelets, and rings at a low price, saying it caused significant loss to the exchequer.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Supporters of imprisoned former premier Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, aim to throw stones with slingshot following police fire tear gas shell to disperse them during clashes, in Islamabad, Pakistan, on November 26, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

Supporters seeking the release of imprisoned Pakistani former premier Imran Khan on Tuesday (November 26, 2024) broke through a ring of shipping containers locking down the capital Islamabad, while at least six people have died in protest-related violence. Protesters battled security forces and ignored a government threat to respond with gunfire.

The dead included four members of the security services and one civilian who were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack on Tuesday, saying an “anarchist group” was deliberately targeting law enforcement personnel. There were no claims of responsibility for the ramming. A police officer died in a separate incident.

Shortly after midnight, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi threatened security forces would respond with live fire if protesters fired weapons at them.

“If they again fire bullets, the bullet will be responded with the bullet,” he said.

Police used tear gas to try and disperse the crowds. Scores of people more have been injured, including journalists who were attacked by Khan supporters. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for The Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was being treated in a hospital.

Pakistani media have mostly stopped filming and photographing the rally, instead focusing on the security measures and the city’s deserted streets.

Khan, who has been in jail for over a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases, remains popular. His party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or PTI, says the cases are politically motivated.

Authorities say only courts can order the release of Khan, who was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. He has been imprisoned since his first conviction in a graft case, in August 2023, and has been sentenced in several cases.

Khan’s supporters were around 10 km (6.2 miles) from their destination, the city’s Red Zone that houses key government buildings. Naqvi said Khan’s party rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city.

Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, who is leading the protest, told people to keep marching toward the Red Zone peacefully. She said another plan of action would be conveyed to protesters if Khan was not released. She also urged the government not to harm the demonstrators.

In a bid to foil the protest, police arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country. On Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested.

Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All educational institutions remain closed. Mobile internet services and messaging platforms are experiencing severe disruption in the capital.

The PTI relies heavily on social media to demand his release and uses messaging platforms like WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible even with a VPN.

The violence comes during an official visit by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan, right, and Bushra Bibi, his wife. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

Multiple cases have been registered in Punjab province of Pakistan against jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi for allegedly speaking against Saudi Arabia, officials said here on Saturday (November 23, 2024).

At least four cases were registered against Bushra Bibi under the Telegraph Act of 1885 and other provisions on the complaint of citizens who blamed her for inciting religious hatred, misleading the public and attacking a brotherly country, Saudi Arabia, officials said.

In a video statement, Bushra Bibi said Khan’s problems began when he visited Madina and was seen coming out of his plane without shoes.

She claimed then Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa received calls after the incident. “Soon after Khan’s return, Bajwa started getting calls ‘Ye tum kya utha key laa aaye ho (whom have you brought)? We are ending the Sharia system in this country and you have brought promoters of Sharia’,” she said, referring to Khan’s September 2018 visit, in the video released on Thursday.

Incarcerated at the Adiala Jail since last year, Khan, 72, however, defended his wife on Friday and said she “did not mention Saudi Arabia at all” in the video hours after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, and former army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa flayed Bushra Bibi over her comments.

These multiple cases were registered in Dera Ghazi Khan, Gujranwala, Multan, Rajanpur and Muzaffarghar districts of Punjab after Prime Minister Sharif criticised Bushra Biwi on Friday.

As the controversy heated up the political atmosphere in the country, Sharif and many other leaders and Ministers from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) said strong action will be taken against those trying to sabotage Pak-Saudi relationship.

The video was meant to motivate supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to join the protest on Sunday in Islamabad but instead kicked up controversy due to the indirect reference towards Saudi Arabia’s alleged role in his ouster from power.

Saudi Arabia and China have been two of Pakistan’s biggest supporters helping it tide over the economic crisis.

However, in the 9:27-minute video, which is also available on PTI’s official X handle, Bushra Biwi did not name any country.

Apart from defending his wife, Khan – in a post on PTI’s official X account, also asserted that his government’s downfall was orchestrated by Bajwa and accused him of preventing investigations into the alleged conspiracy.

Prime Minister Sharif, while addressing a ceremony at Islamabad on Friday, warned the propaganda targeting Saudi Arabia was against the national interest.

“A statement has come out yesterday, which I think there can be no greater enmity against Pakistan than this that you spew venom against the country that has never demanded anything in return and always opened its doors for Pakistan,” he said in an apparent reference to Bushra Bibi’s remarks.

General Bajwa too swiftly refuted Bushra Bibi’s claim and termed her statement – while talking to the media — as a “pack of lies,” asking how a friendly country could interfere in Pakistan’s internal affairs.

Defence minister Asif Khawaja, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar and Information Minister Atta Tarar too flayed her remarks.

Not just the ruling party coalition leaders, the claim by Khan’s wife has taken even the PTI leaders by surprise and they are now questioning the controversial statement, issued ahead of the party’s Sunday protest in Islamabad.

In a post on X, PTI activist and singer Salman Ahmad called Bushra Bibi “corrupt and greedy” and said it was “disgusting” to say that the ex-PM was removed because he walked barefoot in Madina.

Rawalpindi:

A Rawalpindi accountability court has issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Bushra Bibi, the wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, in connection with the GBP 190 million corruption case linked to the Al-Qadir University Trust, ARY News reported.

The court, presided over by Judge Nasir Javed Rana, issued the arrest warrants following the ongoing investigation into the alleged financial discrepancies involving the former prime minister and his family.

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was also presented before the court in connection with the case. Despite the new arrest warrants, both Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi had previously been granted bail by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in relation to the National Crime Agency (NCA) settlement reference concerning the GBP 190 million.

The IHC’s two-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, had reserved its verdict after hearing the case. In a short order, the court had instructed the authorities to release Imran Khan against a surety bond of PKR 1 million, reported ARY News.

Meanwhile, Bushra Bibi, in a separate development, issued a video message urging PTI supporters to participate in the party’s planned protest on November 24. She referred to the protest as a “final or do-or-die” call, urging party workers to rally against the government.

She claimed that negative propaganda against her family started after their visit to Madinah, Saudi Arabia, followed by calls for her character assassination and accusations against her husband, Imran Khan, of being a “Jewish agent.”

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had launched an investigation into the alleged gain of hundreds of acres of land under the Al-Qadir University Trust, with the claim that it caused a loss of GBP 190 million to the national treasury.

According to the charges, Imran Khan and others accused in the case allegedly misallocated PKR 50 billion (equivalent to GBP 190 million at the time) that had been sent by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government, ARY News reported.

In response, NAB filed a corruption reference involving Imran Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, and six other individuals related to the Al-Qadir University project, which was registered on December 26, 2019.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

“An accountability court has extended by 11 days the physical remand of jailed former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in the new Toshakhana corruption case,” media reports said on Friday (August 9, 2024.)

The hearing, presided over by Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana, took place on August 8, 2024 in the makeshift courtroom set up at Rawalpindi’s high-security Adiala Jail, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.

Judge Rana approved the remand extension of the former first couple for 11 days after the lapse of their 10-day physical remand in the fresh Toshakhana corruption case.

Imran Khan (71) has been imprisoned at the Adiala Jail for more than a year now upon his conviction in multiple cases. His wife, 49-year-old Bibi, is also jailed along with him.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) told the court that the accused had cooperated with the investigation team only twice during the previous 10-day remand. The anti-corruption watchdog requested an additional 14-day physical remand to complete the investigation.

“However, after hearing the arguments, the court granted an 11-day extension to the remand and adjourned the hearing until August 19,” the report said. Imran Khan and his wife have already completed 24 days in remand in connection with the new Toshakhana corruption case.

In the case, the NAB accused the former couple of purchasing a jewellery set from the Toshakhana and selling it by violating the laws. Toshakhana is a repository where presents handed to government officials from foreign officials are kept.

According to Toshakhana rules, gifts/presents and other such materials received by persons to whom these rules apply shall be reported to the Cabinet Division. The NAB filed the fresh Toshakhana case against the couple hours after a district and sessions court quashed their conviction in their un-Islamic marriage case last month.

The court’s short order stated that the two should be immediately released unless they were wanted in other cases. After the hearing on Thursday, the former Pakistan PM told reporters that the ruling coalition government led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party would collapse in two months.

“These fools are not understanding that this government doesn’t have more than two months. The government is going to collapse in two months,” he was quoted as saying in the report. “I have a lot of time (at my disposal), but they (the rulers) are running out of time,” he added.

He said that he would not strike a deal with the powers no matter how long the government kept him behind bars, “A deal is made by someone who has committed a crime. I have no money stashed abroad, nor do I own any property outside the country,” he said.

“I have fought all the cases against me and will continue to fight more. The purpose of filing cases against me and my wife was to break the PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf). (The) NAB has filed four cases against me for Toshakhana gifts,” he added.

Imran Khan also said he had not tendered an apology for the May 9 riots, which broke out after the Pakistan Rangers arrested him from the Islamabad High Court premises during his appearance in a corruption case.

“I have not made any unconditional apology. For the past 12 months, I have been saying that the CCTV footage [of May 9 incidents] should be released,” he said.

“If it shows PTI workers were involved in rioting, I will apologise, expel them from the party, and ensure they are punished. Am I crazy to tell my people to attack the military?” he added. He faces more than 200 cases and has been convicted in a few of them. Though the former-cricketer-turned-politician had secured bail or his conviction was set aside, he has not been released.

Bushra Bibi, left, with her husband and Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran, right. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Bushra Bibi, the wife of jailed former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, has been named as a suspect in 11 cases, including the attack on the army headquarters on May 9 last year, the Rawalpindi district police informed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on July 30.

The Rawalpindi police presented a report in the IHC, providing details of the cases filed against 49-year-old Ms. Bibi, who has been incarcerated in the Adiala Jail of Rawalpindi along with her husband. The court had ordered authorities to provide details of the cases registered against her.

During the hearing, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor also submitted a response according to the court’s order, revealing that four cases have been registered against her with NAB, including three in Rawalpindi and one in Lahore.

Though Rawalpindi and Islamabad police and NAB submitted their responses, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and Balochistan police have not come up with the details of the cases against Ms. Bibi. The IHC issued fresh notices to the FIA and Balochistan police to come up with details by Monday and adjourned the case until then.

Ms. Bibi married Mr. Khan in 2018 and became his third wife. During Khan’s rule, she was considered extremely powerful but after the fall of the government, she, like her husband, has been implicated in several cases.

Ms. Bibi has been named in various cases, including the Army Museum, GHQ Gate 4 attack case, the burning of a sensitive military building in Saddar Cantt, attacking an intelligence agency office on Murree Road, and other incidents of arson, rioting, and vandalism in different areas.

She has also been named in cases at the RA Bazaar, Civil Line, New Town, City, Waris Khan, and Taxila police stations.

Islamabad:

A Pakistan court overturned ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan’s conviction on illegal marriage charges on Saturday, though he remains jailed over allegations of inciting riots.

Khan was slapped with a trio of convictions in the days before the February elections — cases he says were orchestrated to prevent his return to power.

Those cases have now all been at least partially rolled back on appeal, with a treason conviction carrying a decade jail term overturned in April, and a 14-year graft sentence suspended in June, though the conviction still stands.

Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi had also been sentenced to seven years for allegedly marrying too soon after her divorce in a breach of Islamic law.

But Islamabad Additional District and Sessions Court judge Afzal Majoka announced in court that the “appeals of both Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi are accepted”.

A spokesman for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said the charges had been “dismissed”.

Khan remains locked up, though, after a court this week cancelled his bail over accusations he incited riots by his supporters in May 2023.

Courting Controversy

Earlier this month a UN panel of experts found Khan’s detention “had no legal basis and appears to have been intended to disqualify him from running for political office”.

“Thus, from the outset, that prosecution was not grounded in law and was reportedly instrumentalised for a political purpose,” it said, calling for his immediate release after nearly a year in jail.

Candidates loyal to Khan won the most seats in the national election but were kept from government by an alliance of military-backed rival parties.

Khan served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, when he was ousted by a no-confidence vote after falling out with the military establishment, which wields huge influence over civilian politics.

In opposition he waged a campaign of defiance against the top generals, who directly ruled Pakistan for decades of its history, even accusing them of an assassination attempt that wounded him.

But the former cricket star’s comeback campaign was hobbled by scores of legal cases, which analysts say were likely brought at the behest of the military establishment.

Khan was first briefly arrested in May 2023, sparking nationwide unrest from PTI supporters, some of which targeted military facilities.

The government and military cited the attacks as justification for a sweeping crackdown on PTI, which saw its senior leadership decimated by arrests and defections.

An anti-terrorism court in the eastern city of Lahore on Tuesday refused to bail him as police investigate his alleged role in the unrest, despite the fact he was behind bars at the time.

Surviving The Crackdown

PTI candidates were forced to stand as independents in the February 8 elections, which had been repeatedly delayed amid political chaos.

Khan’s arrest and conviction for graft back in August 2023 meant he was barred from standing for office himself, confined to a cell in Adiala Jail south of the capital Islamabad.

Despite that, candidates loyal to PTI secured more seats than any other party.

Nonetheless they were blocked from power by a broad coalition of parties considered more pliable to the influence of the military.

Polling day itself was marred by allegations of vote-tampering amid a nationwide mobile internet blackout Islamabad said it orchestrated over security concerns.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Islamabad:

A court in Pakistan granted on Wednesday a request by the wife of former Prime Minister Imran Khan to shift to jail, her lawyer said, instead of house arrest ordered by the government because of security concerns.

Bushra Bibi, detained at Khan’s hilltop mansion in Islamabad since the couple’s January conviction on charges of illegally selling state gifts, had challenged the house arrest, her lawyer Naeem Panjutha posted on social media platform X.

Through her lawyers Bibi had filed an appeal in the Islamabad High Court, asking to be shifted to the jail.

The court ordered authorities to shift her to Adyala jail in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where Khan, 70, a former cricket superstar, is serving his 14-year sentence, his party said in a statement.

The party said Bibi had complained of being served contaminated food by the authorities at the house, which was declared a sub-jail.

The authorities have denied the accusation.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Islamabad:

An accountability court in Islamabad barred former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, from issuing statements against state institutions and officials, The Express Tribune reported.

Judge Basir Javed Rana ordered the PTI founder and his spouse from speaking against state institutions in the courtroom during the hearing of a petition seeking a fair trial.

The court also ordered the media to avoid publishing such political provocative statements which target state institutions and their officials.

According to the order, the PTI chief made provocative political statements against senior officials of state institutions, including the army, the judiciary, and the army chief, as per The Express Tribune.

“Such statements disrupt judicial decorum and also obstruct judicial functions such as the dispensation of justice,” the order added.

In its order, the court also instructed the prosecution, the accused, and their defence counsels to not make political or inflammatory statements that may disrupt the decorum of the court.

Khan, who was PM from 2018-2022, remains jailed in multiple cases, including a 14-year jail sentence for him and his wife for the illegal sale of state gifts.

Khan was first imprisoned after being handed a three-year prison sentence in August 2023 by the Election Commission for not declaring assets earned from selling gifts worth more than PKR 140 million rupees (USD 501,000) in state possession and received during his premiership.

In January, Khan and wife Bushra Bibi were handed 14-year jail terms following a separate investigation by the country’s top anti-graft body into the same charges involving state gifts.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)