Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and ex-prime minister Imran Khan’s legal woes multiplied on Wednesday when Accountability Court (AC) granted eight-day physical remand in Al-Qadir Trust case whereas District Court indicted him in a separate reference involving the sale of state gifts known as Toshakhana case.
A day after the top anti-graft watchdog apprehended Imran Khan with legal support of paramilitary Rangers officials from Islamabad High Court’s biometric branch, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) officials produced Imran Khan before the AC Judge Muhammad Bashir. The officials filed an application for 14-days physical custody of Imran Khan; however, the court granted 8-days physical remand of Imran Khan for investigation in the matter.
It has been reported that Imran Khan and his wife are accused of receiving a total of 458 kanals of land as a reward of deal on government level during Khan’s regime through the Al-Qadir charitable trust, which runs a university adjacent to GT Road at Mouza Bakrala, Sohawa, district Jhelum, devoted to spirituality and Islamic teachings.
The Judge Muhammad Bashir conducted the hearing of the case at the New Police Guest House at Police Line Islamabad earlier in the day, wherein the NAB prosecutors argued that they may be given a 14-day physical remand of the former prime minister in the case for proper investigation in the matter.
However, counsels for Imran Khan comprising senior advocate Supreme Court Khawaja Haris, Barrister Ali Gohar and Advocate Ali Bukhari opposed the plea of NAB, saying Imran Khan is ready to cooperate in the investigation. They argued that when the accused is ready to provide sufficient guarantee to participate in the investigation then there is no need of physical remand in the case in hand.
The NAB prosecution team including Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi, Special Prosecutor Rafi Maqsood, NAB investigation officer Mian Umar Nadeem and NAB Prosecutor Sardar Zulqarnain appeared before the court in the matter.
While seeking 14-days remand of Imran Khan, the NAB prosecutors apprised the court that arrest warrant was shown to Imran Khan at the time of his arrest; however, the PTI chief maintained that he was shown the warrants when he reached the NAB office.
During the hearing, the NAB prosecutor argued, saying the case in hand is about corruption, claiming National Crime Agency (NAC) of the UK had investigated the matter, adding money in this case was to be transferred to the government of Pakistan.
Advocate Khawaja Haris opposed the NAB prosecutor arguments saying Imran Khan was illegally nabbed where no proper method was observed. He requested the court to examine the fact when did the NAB converted the complaint into a reference, adding his client Imran Khan has also been dragged in many other cases.
During the proceedings, PTI chief Imran Khan expressed his concerns saying he was fearful for his life. “I have not been to the washroom in 24 hours,”. Imran Khan requested the court permit his personal physician Dr Faisal Sultan access to him. “I am afraid I will meet the same fate as ‘Maqsood Chaprasi’,” Imran said in reference to an alleged key witness in Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s money laundering case who passed away due to a cardiac arrest last year. The PTI had termed the witness’ death ‘mysterious’. “They give [you] an injection, and [you] slowly die,” the ex-premier said.
Separately, Imran Khan was indicted on Wednesday in the Toshakhana case even though the PTI chief and his legal team boycotted the proceedings. Additional District and Sessions Judge (AD&SJ) Islamabad Humayun Dilawar has decided last week to frame charges against Imran Khan in Toshakhana case on May 10 in District Court F-8 Markaz. But a hearing for the Toshakhana case was also held at the New Police Line Guest House after the hearing for the Al-Qadir Trust case on Wednesday.
Speaking to the media after the hearing of the case, one of the counsels for Imran Khan Advocate Sher Afzal Marwat informed the former prime minister and lawyers boycotted the indictment proceedings. He maintained that the court indicted the PTI chief despite his lack of confidence in the judge, hearing the case.
“We are going to the Supreme Court (SC) today against the high court’s decision yesterday’s decision,” Marwat said while referring to the IHC ruling that Imran’s arrest was legal. Advocate Marwat has been reported saying the former prime minister was “kept awake” throughout last night, adding that he was kept in “a dirty room”. He further claimed the Islamabad police did not even provide a bed to the PTI chief. “Imran Khan’s message is that even if martial law is imposed, you [the nation] must stand up for the rule of law,” Advocate Marwat added.
Marwat said that the former prime minister has not “complained about NAB’s behaviour”, saying the PTI chief has “expressed no confidence in IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq”. Imran’s lawyer also expressed disbelief on the Additional Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar and said he cannot adjudicate the matter. He added that the PTI chief has said that he was tortured at the time of his arrest.
It is pertinent to mention that during last week on May 5, Additional Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar had dismissed two petitions filed by the PTI chief challenging criminal proceedings against him in the Toshakhana case after hearing arguments from both sides. During the hearing of the petitions, Imran’s lawyer Khawaja Haris and ECP’s counsel Amjad Pervaiz had presented arguments. The judge had admitted the case for hearing in the court and had summoned the PTI chief in person on May 10 for indictment.