RAWALPINDI: An Accountability Court on Tuesday indicted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in the £ 190 million National Crime Agency (NCA) scam commonly known as the Al-Qadir Trust case.
The Accountability Court Judge, Nasir Javed Rana, while hearing the case at Adiala jail where the PTI founder is currently incarcerated in Toshakhana, cypher and illegal marriage cases, framed charges against Khan and his wife in the Al-Qadir Trust case. Khan and his wife were present in the courtroom during the hearing. The judge read the charge sheet but both Khan and his wife denied charges levelled against them.
PTI founder’s lawyers Barrister Salman Safdar, Umair Niazi and other PTI’s lawyer and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Deputy Prosecutor Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi, along with his team, appeared in the court.
During the hearing, the judge said that statements of 58 witnesses will be recorded in the case. The judge said to Khan, the court is framing the charge against him, tell me [the judge] if you are guilty or not. Why should I read the charge sheet when I know what’s written in it? Khan replied.
Khan came to the rostrum and said that we did not want a delay in this case. “NAB was in a hurry before February 8, now we want a quick conviction”, he said.
The judge told Khan, to let him know whether he had conducted a check-up of his teeth or not. Khan replied in the negative, saying that a check-up of his teeth had not been done and he was told the doctor would visit the jail on Sunday. “Now the jail authorities are saying that the doctor would come next week,” he added. During the hearing, the court approved Khan’s plea seeking a general physician and dentist for his medical examination and dental check-up.
PTI founder’s lawyer said that under the law, copies of references have to be provided to the defences even days before the indictment. “We have filed a petition to share the copy of the documents,” he added.
The court adjourned the hearing of the case on March 6 and summoned five prosecution witnesses to record their statements.
The NAB on December 22, 2023 had a reference in the Accountability Court in connection with £ 190 million National Crime Agency (NCA) scam commonly known as the Al-Qadir Trust case against Khan, his wife, and six other accused.
The bureau nominated Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, trustee of Al Qadir Trust; FarhatShehzadi alias Farah Gogi; Shehzad Akbar, former special assistant to the prime minister on accountability and former chairman of Asset Recovery Unit (ARU); Malik Riaz Hussain, chief executive officer (CEO) of Bahria Town (Private) Limited, Ziaul Mustafa Nasim, a former expert on international criminal law ARU, Syed Zulfiqar Abbas Bukhari, former trustee of Al-Qadir Trust, and Ahmed Ali Riaz.
Talking to reporters informally at Adiala jail, Khan demanded resignation from the Chief Election Commissioner, Sikandar Sultan Raja. Our party will stage a protest on Saturday next against rigging in the general election held on February 8, he said, adding that there is no bigger theft than stealing public mandate. He said that they had stolen the public mandate and now they are declaring the letter his party is writing to the IMF, as treason. I have dictated the letter to be written to the IMF but after dictating the letter I did not meet with party leaders, Khan said.
Khan said that today, he will meet with the party leaders and will get an update from them about the letter.
After consultation with the party leaders, the letter will be forwarded to the IMF, he said, adding that it will be written in the letter that economic stability was not possible without political stability in the country.
He said that President Arif Alvi took the right step of not summing the National Assembly session.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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