ISLAMABAD (PEN) : An accountability court issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for Bushra Bibi, the wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, in connection with the £190 million settlement case, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case.
The warrant was issued by trial court judge Nasir Javed Rana after Bushra’s continued absence from the case’s hearings, having missed at least eight of them. The court directed police to arrest Bushra and present her before the court on November 26. Additionally, a show-cause notice was issued to the person who stood as the guarantor for her bail.
During the hearing, Imran Khan, who is currently incarcerated in Adiala prison, was presented before the court. Bushra’s lawyer requested an exemption for her from the session on medical grounds. However, a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) official objected, stating that the medical report provided by Bushra’s lawyer was issued by Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital, while the notary attestation had been done in Islamabad.
Neither Bushra nor Imran Khan had submitted their statements under Section 342 of the CrPC, which is required for the final stages of the trial. The couple had been given a 79-point questionnaire for their final statements at a previous hearing.
It’s important to note that Bushra was released on bail last month after spending about nine months in Adiala jail in connection with the Toshakhana case.
This legal development follows a controversial video message from Bushra Bibi, in which she made serious allegations against Saudi Arabia, claiming the country had played a role in the ousting of the Imran Khan-led government in 2022. In the same message, she also urged PTI supporters to take part in the highly anticipated protest on November 24 in Islamabad.
