Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi challenge £190m case conviction

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have filed a petition in Islamabad High Court (IHC) against their conviction in the £190 million case.

Earlier this month on Jan 17, Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed handed over a 14-year jail term to Imran Khan, while Bushra Bibi received a 7-year sentence.

The court also slapped a heavy fine of Rs1 million on former prime minister Khan, while his wife was awarded a fine of Rs0.5 million.

The £190m case, commonly known as the Al-Qadir Trust case, involved allegations that Imran and some others in 2019 adjusted Rs50 billion — amounting to £190 million at the time — sent by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government during his tenure as the country’s prime minister.

The petitioners filed their plea through advocate Khalid Yousuf Chaudhry, accusing the NAB of malice and abuse of power.

The former premier has sought to nullify the January 17 verdict of the accountability court, saying that the conviction was hastily passed based on an incomplete investigation.

The appellants have taken the stand that the failure to obtain the text of the agreement with the National Crime Agency (NCA) shows the weakness of the investigation process, and NCA officials were not even involved in the investigation.