PTI Founder Jailed 14 Years, Bushra Bibi Gets 7 in £190M Scam
APP
Islamabad: The Accountability Court (AC) on Friday sentenced the PTI founder, Imran Khan, to 14 years in jail and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to seven years in a graft case involving a £190 million scam.
The court also imposed fines of Rs. 1 million on the PTI founder and Rs. 0.5 million on Bushra Bibi. Failure to pay these fines would result in additional imprisonment of six months for the PTI founder and three months for Bushra Bibi.
Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana announced the verdict, which had been reserved earlier after the prosecution presented all its evidence and witnesses. Both the PTI founder and Bushra Bibi were present in court, accompanied by key individuals, including NAB prosecutors Irfan Ahmed, Sohail Arif, and Owais Arshad Adiala.
Others in attendance included Aleema Khan (PTI founder’s sister), PTI lawyer Barrister Salman Akram Raja, and Bushra Bibi’s daughter and son-in-law. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar and Shoaib Shaheen also appeared in court earlier in the day.
After Judge Nasir Javed Rana pronounced the verdict, Bushra Bibi was taken into custody directly from the courtroom. The court further ordered the authorities to confiscate and take control of Al-Qadir University.
The judgment came 30 days after the court reserved its verdict on December 18, 2023. The announcement had been postponed four times, with instructions to ensure the attendance of both Bushra Bibi and the PTI founder for the final ruling.
A total of 35 witnesses testified against the accused. Several co-accused, including Barrister Shahzad Akbar, Zulfi Bokhari, and Farhat Shehzadi (commonly known as Gogi), were declared proclaimed offenders.
Background of the Case
The £190 million case, filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in December 2023, involves allegations of misuse of funds sent by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to Pakistan. The funds were part of a settlement between the PTI government and a property tycoon, which reportedly caused a £190 million loss to Pakistan’s national exchequer.
Bushra Bibi was named in the case for her role as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust. The couple allegedly received undue benefits, including over 458 kanals in Mauza Bakrala, Sohawa, designated for the establishment of Al-Qadir University.
During the PTI founder’s tenure as Prime Minister, the NCA had seized £190 million worth of assets from the tycoon, intending to return them to Pakistan. However, the settlement details remained undisclosed when Khan’s cabinet approved it in December 2019. Following this, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad.
