RAWALPINDI(National Times): Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, will be indicted in the fresh Toshakhana case on November 18. The couple’s indictment date was announced by a special court of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) which also dismissed the acquittal pleas filed by the former prime minister and ex-first lady in the said case. The court had reserved its verdict on the suspects’ acquittal pleas on November 8. The case at hand pertains to an alleged illegal sale of a jewellery set gifted to Bushra by the Saudi crown prince when her husband Khan was the prime minister of the country from 2018 to 2022. However, it is not to be mixed with the first Toshakhana case wherein the couple was sentenced to 14 years in prison and was handed down a fine of Rs1.57 billion — Rs787 million each — in January. The couple’s sentence in the first (old) Toshakhana case was suspended by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in April. The announcement of the indictment date in the new Toshakhana case comes as the former first lady, last month, was released from Adiala jail after months-long incarceration after the IHC accepted her bail plea against Rs1 million surety bonds. The former first lady’s release prompted rumours alleging that the development was a result of a deal — a proposition categorically denied by National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub. “Bushra [Bibi’s] release is not part of any deal,” the PTI leader had remarked. It is to be noted that both Khan and Bushra were arrested in the said case soon after their acquittal by Islamabad’s district and sessions court in the iddat case — also known as the un-Islamic nikah case. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) then filed a fresh reference against the couple accusing them of causing loss to the national exchequer.
What’s the case?
In its reference, the accountability watchdog said that the deputy military secretary briefed the Toshakhana section officer to estimate and declare the price of the jewellery set. The jewellery set, it mentioned, was not deposited in Toshakhana. The jewellery company sold the necklace for €300,000 and earrings for €80,000 on May 25, 2018. The information regarding the price of the bracelet and ring could not be obtained from the company. On May 28, 2021, the price of the jewellery set was estimated at Rs70.56 million; the price of the necklace was Rs50.64 million and the price of the earrings included in the jewellery valued at Rs10.50 million back then. As per the reference, the PTI founder and his wife violated the NAB Ordinance. It added that an inquiry was initiated against the former first couple on the instructions of the NAB chairman on August 1, 2022. “PTI founder and Bushra Bibi have misused their powers. The PTI founder retained 58 out of 108 gifts during his prime ministership,” read the reference.
