Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to expedite the hearing of their appeals to suspend their convictions in the £190 million Al-Qadir Trust corruption case. The couple, convicted on January 17, 2025, by an accountability court, received sentences of 14 years and 7 years, respectively, along with fines of Rs1 million for Khan and Rs500,000 for Bibi. Their legal team, led by Barrister Salman Safdar, argues that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) misused its authority, citing an incomplete investigation and lack of credible evidence.
The petitions emphasize that the funds in question, part of a £190 million settlement with the UK’s National Crime Agency, were not proceeds of crime, as clarified by a 2021 UK Court of Appeal ruling. The legal team alleges the trial was rushed and politically motivated, pointing to procedural lapses and NAB’s repeated adjournments that delayed the appeals process. Despite a prior IHC decision on April 18, 2025, to schedule the appeals within two weeks, progress has been slow, prompting this renewed plea for urgency.
Khan, incarcerated since August 2023, and Bibi, arrested post-verdict, claim the convictions aim to undermine their political standing. The case centers on allegations that they facilitated a deal allowing a property tycoon to use laundered funds, receiving land for the Al-Qadir Trust in return. The IHC, led by Acting Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar, is expected to address the plea soon, with the couple’s lawyers seeking bail pending the final appeal decision.
Posts on X reflect ongoing public attention to the case, with users noting the repeated delays in hearings and the presence of PTI leaders at court proceedings. The outcome of this plea could impact Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and its negotiations with the government, amid broader concerns about judicial fairness in Pakistan.
Published in SouthAsianDesk, July 8th, 2025
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