An Islamabad court on Monday ordered the transfer of the new Toshakhana case involving PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) court.
Imran Khan, 71, has been detained at Adiala Jail for nearly a year following convictions in four cases, including two Toshakhana references, the cipher case, and the Iddat case. Bushra Bibi is also imprisoned in connection with these cases.
Imran’s sentences for the Toshakhana references were previously suspended, and he was acquitted by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in the cipher case in June. However, following his acquittal in the Iddat case, NAB re-arrested him and his wife in a new Toshakhana case, affecting his potential release.
On Monday, Accountability Court Judge Muhammad Ali Waraich reviewed the post-arrest bail applications for Imran and Bushra, who were brought to court from jail. The court determined that the case no longer fell under NAB’s jurisdiction due to recent amendments, and thus it would be transferred to the FIA court for bail proceedings.
The court’s written judgment noted that following the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s ruling on intra-court appeals, the amendments to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) of 1999 had been reinstated. Consequently, the court stated that it lacked jurisdiction over the case under the amended NAO provisions.
The NAB prosecution team opposed the bail applications, arguing that the case was not within the court’s jurisdiction post-amendment. The court’s verdict indicated that the case, being a scheduled offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, was now triable by the Special Judge Central under the FIA Act of 1974.
Imran’s lawyer, Salman Safdar, contended that the case should be deemed over under the new NAB laws. He acknowledged the need for the case to be transferred but requested that bail decisions be made prior to the transfer.
The court reserved its decision and later ruled that the case would proceed under the FIA court’s jurisdiction. A hearing for the Toshakhana case and bail applications is scheduled for the following day, with all case records to be transferred to the Special Judge Central’s court.
