PTI founder, Bushra Bibi convicted in £190m Al-Qadir Trust case

RAWALPINDI: An Accountability Court in Rawalpindi awarded a 14-year jail term to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan in a £190 million Al-Qadir Trust case, ARY News reported.

Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi has been jailed for seven years. Judge Nasir Javed Rana pronounced the verdict at Adiala Jail where accused Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were present

The court also imposed fines of Rs. 1 million and Rs. 500,000 on Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi respectively. Both individuals would have to face additional prison time if they fail to pay the fines.

Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi would have to face additional face six-month and three-month imprisonments in case of non-payment. Bushra Bibi was taken into custody from the courtroom in Rawalpindi.

The accountability court also ordered to take Al-Qadir University into government custody.

The verdict was earlier deferred thrice on December 23, January 6 and once again on January 13.

Accountability court judge Nasir Javed Rana reserved the verdict on December 18 after conducting several hearings at Adiala Jail. The accountability court took almost one year to complete the hearing of the case with prosecution team and defence lawyers completing their arguments.

Al-Qadir University case

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had launched an investigation against Imran Khan and his wife and others for the alleged gain of hundreds of canals of land in the name of Al Qadir University Trust, which reportedly caused a loss of 190 million pounds to the national exchequer.

As per the charges, the former prime minister and others accused allegedly adjusted Rs50 billion — 190 million pounds at the time — sent by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the government.

The NAB filed a corruption reference against Imran and seven others, including his wife, in connection with the Al-Qadir University.