The Accountability Court on Friday awarded l4-year jail term to former prime minister and PTI founder Imran Khan, and seven-year imprisonment to his wife Bushra Bibi after convicting them in £190 million Al-Qadir Trust case, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Pronouncing the verdict inside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, AC Judge Nasir Javed Rana also slapped a fine of Rs1 million on Imran Khan and half a million rupees on Bushra Bibi. In case of non-payment of fines, the convicts will spend further six and three months in jail respectively.
Soon after the verdict’s announcement, Bushra Bibi was taken into custody from inside the courtroom.
The court remarked that Bushra Bibi sided with her husband in his “illegal activities”, directing the federal government to take control of the Al-Qadir University and confiscate its land.
As per the court’s short order, Imran Khan Khan has been convicted for "corrupt practices" and "misuse of authority", while Bushra has been convicted for "involvement in illegal activities".
Both Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were present inside the courtroom. Also present were Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Shoaib Shaheen, Salman Akram Raja, and other lawyers.
The team of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), led by Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi, was also present at Adiala jail courtroom.
According to the verdict, property of the “sham trust ‘Al-Qadir University Project Trust’ is hereby forfeited to the Federal Government within the meaning of Section 10(a) of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999”.
“Both the convicts are present before the Court, they be taken into custody in this case and be handed over to the Superintendent Jail along with the Committal Warrant to serve the sentences so awarded,” it added.
The court convicted Imran under Section 9(a)(ii)(iv)(vi) of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999, for corruption and corrupt practices. Meanwhile, Bushra has been convicted under Section 9(a)(xii) of the same ordinance for "aiding, assisting, and abetting" corruption and corrupt practices.
The 148-page verdict mentioned that Bushra's role was limited to aiding and abetting the corruption offences, which is considered a mitigating circumstance in her sentencing.
It further said that the prosecution's case was based on documentary evidence, which was found to be credible and coherent, while the defence had been unable to discredit the prosecution's witnesses or create reasonable doubt in the case.
Both accused had filed applications under Section 265-K of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) for acquittal, which were dismissed by the court.
The court concluded that the prosecution had successfully proved its case "beyond any shadow of doubt", and the convictions were upheld.
The verdict was announced amid tight security outside Adiala Jail.
The announcement of the court’s decision, reserved on December 18, 2024, had already been postponed thrice.
On December 23, 2024, the original date the verdict was supposed to be made public, the accountability court postponed its decision in the case until January 6, 2025, due to winter vacations in courts.
Then, on January 6, the verdict could not be pronounced as Judge Nasir Javed Rana was on leave.
On January 13, Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana did not make public the decision citing absence of defendants in the case.
On Thursday evening, the Accountability Court staff said that the judgment will be announced on Friday (today – January 17) at 11:30 am. The court staff has also issued notices to Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi through their counsels.
Imran Khan and his wife were indicted in the case on February 27, 2024, shortly after the general elections.
NAB corruption reference
The 190 million pounds case involved a reference filed by NAB against Imran Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, and others in December 2023.
The case centred around an alleged settlement between the PTI government and a property tycoon, which reportedly caused a loss of 190 million pounds to Pakistan’s national exchequer.
Imran Khan and the other accused were alleged to have misused 190 million pounds sent by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) as part of the settlement. Bushra Bibi was named an accused for her role as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust.
Additionally, the couple was accused of receiving undue benefits, including over 458 kanals of land in Mauza Bakrala, Sohawa, for the establishment of Al-Qadir University.
During Imran Khan's tenure, the NCA seized 190 million pounds worth of assets from the tycoon. The assets were meant to be handed to Pakistan, with the settlement deemed a civil matter by the NCA.
However, the details of the confidential agreement were not disclosed when Imran Khan's cabinet approved it in December 2019. Subsequently, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad.
Reporters Ershad Qureshi