ISLAMABAD: Incarcerated former premier Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi were indicted in a new Toshakhana case — the third graft reference against them — concerning the purchase of an expensive Bulgari jewellery set at a throwaway price.
The indictment comes a week after the PTI founder and other party leaders were charged in a case concerning the attack on the army’s General Headquarters in Rawalpindi during last year’s May 9 protests.
While Imran was granted bail in the case by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) last month, he has remained in prison on multiple charges since his arrest on August 5 last year.Special Court Central-I Judge Shahrukh Arjumand presided over the proceedings today at Adiala Jail, where Imran was presented. Bushra Bibi, who is on bail in the case, appeared with her counsel.
Both Imran and Bushra denied the charges.Subsequently, the court summoned the prosecution witnesses on December 18 to record their testimonies.
Today’s indictment is Imran’s seventh — the previous being on May 10, 2023 in the first Toshakhana case against him; in January in a second Toshakhana reference; in February in the £190 million corruption case; and recently over the GHQ attack. Imran’s sentences in the previous two Toshakhana cases were suspended.
He was also indicted on Dec 13, 2023 in the cipher case and in January in the Iddat case — in both of which the suspects were later acquitted.The couple’s trial in the £190 million case has reached its final stage, with the couple testifying before an accountability court this week.
In the most recent case, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) accused the couple of retaining an expensive Bulgari jewellery set gifted by a foreign leader — including a necklace, earrings, bracelets, and rings — at a low price, saying it caused significant loss to the exchequer.
Last month, Imran’s counsel rejected the allegations, stressing that the gifts were acquired under the 2018 Toshakhana policy, with payments made in accordance with valuations by customs and appraisers. The defence argued that the appraiser, Sohaib Abbasi, was coerced into altering his statement to implicate the PTI founder.
The couple were apprehended in the case on July 13, following their acquittal in the Iddat case the same day.
