The Islamabad High Court has stayed the sentences of PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in the National Accountability Bureau’s Toshakhana case.
A division bench of the court determined that the main appeals will be heard after Eid.
The NAB prosecutor indicated that they had examined the ruling and determined that the punishment should be suspended.
Barrister Ali Zafar, the PTI leader, stated that the Toshakhana penalty has been suspended, and the main appeal would be heard later.
Former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser stated that Bushra Bibi should be released soon in the Toshakhana case and that further cases involving the PTI founder will be annulled in the same manner.
According to Ali Muhammad Khan, falsehoods do not survive forever, and the truth eventually emerges.
On January 31, Accountability Court Judge Muhammad Bashir sentenced Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi to 14 years in jail apiece.
Khan was also barred from holding any public office for ten years. Each was fined Rs787 million, bringing the total to Rs1.58 billion.
According to the decision, the fine will be recovered in the form of tax arrears, and the time spent in jail would be considered part of the penalty.
In the comprehensive ruling, the accountability court held Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi guilty of abusing their positions for financial advantage. The lawsuit involved embezzling billions of rupees from the national exchequer by accepting costly presents from the Toshakhana in violation of regulations while he was in office.
Key points:
- Khan and Bibi received 14 years of imprisonment each with hard labour for misusing the Prime Minister’s Office to obtain over Rs1.57 billion in financial benefits.
- They were fined Rs787 million each.
- Evidence showed they received 108 gifts from foreign leaders, including expensive Graff jewellery from the Saudi Crown Prince, which was undervalued and not deposited in the Toshakhana by Bushra Bibi. Substantial evidence was adduced by the prosecution, the judgment stated.
- The court deemed Khan’s behaviour during the trial inappropriate and accused him of using delaying tactics.
Details about the verdict:
Judge Muhammad Bashir’s 108-page decision claims that Khan and Bibi exploited their positions to get rich presents from foreign leaders. One notable example is an expensive Graff jewellery set acquired by the Saudi Crown Prince, which was valued at more than Rs3.16 billion but declared at only Rs 9 million. This undervaluation resulted in a loss of more than Rs1.57 billion to the national budget.
Maria Ghanchi