Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday suspended the 14-year sentences of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in connection with the Toshakhana graft case, Dawn reported. The duo were sentenced by an accountability court on January 31, just days before the general elections and were also sentenced to seven years in an 'un-Islamic' marriage case.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed a case in December last year against Imran and his wife for retaining a jewellery set received from the Saudi crown prince against an undervalued assessment. The verdict comes eight days before the February 8 general elections, which Imran's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is contesting amid a state crackdown and without an electoral symbol.
Accountability Judge Mohammad Bashir conducted the hearing at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where Imran currently remains imprisoned. The couple were also barred from holding any public office for 10 years and slapped with a fine of Rs 787 million.
What is the case about?
Pakistan's anti-graft watchdog alleged that during his tenure as the PM, Imran Khan and his wife had received a total of 108 gifts from different heads of states and foreign dignitaries. Of those gifts, they allegedly retained 58 gifts against an undervalued amount of over Rs 142 million.
The reference filed by NAB pertains only to the Graff jewellery set received from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman and retained against a highly undervalued assessment by the above-mentioned accused persons. The gift was reported to Toshakhana of the cabinet division by the deputy military secretary vide letter dated September 2020 but the same was not deposited in accordance with Procedure for the Acceptance and Disposal of Gifts 2018 for true and transparent assessment.
While the PTI founder had been presented during the hearing, his wife had not appeared before the court at the time. The former PM alleged that his wife had nothing to do with the case and was being humiliated by being forcibly dragged into it. "I have been deceived as I was only called to mark my attendance for the hearing," said the PTI founder.
The January sentence against Imran and his wife came one day after he and his deputy Shah Mahmood Qureshi were sentenced to ten years in prison in the cipher case for allegedly leaking state secrets.
Cipher case hearing on the next day
IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq said the cipher case would be completed in a few days, according to Geo News. "We cannot fix the Toshakhana case for hearing the very next day after holding a hearing on it today," he said, adding that the cipher case pertaining to the disclosure of state secrets was fixed for hearing on the next day.
The case involves the former PM brandishing a document alleging that it contains US involvement behind his ouster from power in 2022. The sentence further dampened Imran's already beleaguered hopes to contest the elections due to prior legal cases and indictments.
The special court had begun the cipher trial afresh last month at the Adiala district jail after Imran and Qureshi were indicted for a second time in the case on December 13. The Pakistan Supreme Court approved the post-arrest bails of Imran and Qureshi last month. While Imran remained in jail due to other cases lodged against him, Qureshi was manhandled and re-arrested in a fresh case related to the May 9 riots.
