An accountability court Rawalpindi has decided that it will not announce verdict in £190 million case against PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi on Monday (tomorrow) and Court staff has informed PTI lawyers about the decision, reported 24NewsHD TV channel. The next date of hearing will be announced later by the Court.
Earlier, an accountability court Wednesday reserved its verdict in the £190 million case against PTI founder Imran Khan, and his wife Bushra Bibi.
Judge Nasir Javed Rana reserved the ruling as counsels of PTI founder Khan and his wife concluded their final arguments in the case. The prosecution team, however, completed its arguments a day earlier.
The Court has ordered that verdict in the high-profile case will be announced on December 23. The incarcerated ex-premier and former first lady were indicted on February 27 last year.
During the one-year-long trial, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) recorded testimonies of 35 witnesses, including former principal secretary Azam Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ex-chief minister Pervez Khattak and former federal minister Zubaida Jalal.
The NAB had filed the reference against Khan, Bushra, and others in December 2023. The couple is facing a NAB inquiry related to a settlement between the PTI government and a property tycoon, which reportedly caused a loss of £190 million to the national exchequer.
As per the charges, Khan and other accused allegedly adjusted Rs50 billion — £190 million at the time — sent by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government as part of the agreement with the property tycoon. Bushra Bibi was nominated as an accused in the case for being a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust.
They are also accused of getting undue benefit in the form of over 458 kanals of land at Mouza Bakrala, Sohawa, to establish Al Qadir University. During the PTI government, the NCA seized assets worth £190 million from a property tycoon in Britain.
The UK agency said the assets would be passed to the government of Pakistan and the settlement with the Pakistani property tycoon was “a civil matter, and does not represent a finding of guilt”. Subsequently, then-prime minister Khan got approval for the settlement with the UK crime agency from his cabinet on December 3, 2019, without disclosing the details of the confidential agreement. It was decided that the money would be submitted to the Supreme Court on behalf of the tycoon. Subsequently, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad a few weeks after the PTI-led government approved the agreement with the property tycoon.
Reporter: Hashir Warraich