An accountability court in Islamabad on Monday postponed its verdict in the £190 million corruption case against former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi.
The verdict was initially scheduled for today after the court reserved its decision on December 18, Express News reported.
However, Judge Nasir Javed Rana announced that the ruling would be delayed, noting the upcoming winter holidays and a course at the high court. The court’s official winter vacation begins on December 24 and runs until January 1.
The judge stated that the verdict against Imran and Bushra will be announced on January 6, 2025.
At the last hearing, Barrister Salman Safdar, counsel for the couple, argued that the case was one of “political revenge”, adding that the defence had been proved innocent in previous cases.
He said the case was one in which the matter involved PML-N President Nawaz Sharif’s son, Hassan Nawaz, as well and yet the latter was not included in proceedings.
“The reference was made to target a specific couple. Before becoming the prime minister, the PTI founder was known as a social worker, collecting donations worth billions of rupees,” he said.
What is the £190 million case?
Imran and Bushra were indicted in the case on February 27, following the general elections.
The case alleges that Imran Khan and others involved adjusted Rs50 billion—equivalent to £190 million at the time—that was transferred by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government.
As PM, Khan obtained cabinet approval for this settlement on December 3, 2019, without disclosing the confidential details of the agreement. The arrangement had stipulated that the funds would be submitted to the Supreme Court.
In his testimony earlier this month, Imran Khan dismissed the corruption charges as politically motivated, alleging that his political rivals had used state institutions to target him.
The corruption reference also names several other individuals, including Mirza Shehzad Akbar, Zulfi Bukhari, and Farhat Shahzadi, all of whom have been accused of conspiring to divert state funds.
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