ISLAMABAD: A high court in Pakistan on Wednesday dismissed the pleas filed by former premier Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi challenging their arrest in a new Toshakhana corruption case.
The divisional bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) comprised of Justice Mian Gul Hasan Aurangzeb and Justice Babar Sattar, heard the pleas and declared it ineffective.
During the hearing, Salman Safdar, the lawyer representing Imran Khan, argued that the court had previously deemed the call-up notices as “ambiguous” and noted that this was the second legal action taken in the Toshakhana case.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor informed the court that the Toshakhana reference had been filed and that Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi could apply for post-arrest bail.
The court asked about the investigation’s progress and inquired whether the investigating officer (IO) had visited Adiala Jail. The IO confirmed that they had, and had received responses to their questionnaire.
Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were arrested on July 13 in connection with a new NAB reference related to Toshakhana, shortly after their acquittal in the Iddat case. The NAB team, led by Deputy Director Mohsin Haroon, arrested the couple from Adiala Jail.
This development followed the Islamabad district and sessions court’s acceptance of the appeals filed by the couple against their conviction in the Iddat case.
Earlier this year, the couple had been sentenced to seven years in prison and fined Rs500,000 each after being found guilty of fraudulent nikah.
The IHC’s recent verdict removes the final legal barrier keeping Imran Khan in jail. His sentences in the two Toshakhana cases were suspended, and he was acquitted by the IHC in the cipher case.
