An accountability court issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for Bushra Bibi, the wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, on Friday in connection with the £190 million settlement case, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case.
Judge Nasir Javed Rana issued the arrest order due to Bushra’s repeated failure to attend hearings, missing at least eight sessions. The court directed the police to arrest Bushra and present her before the court on November 26.
Additionally, a show-cause notice was issued to the person who guaranteed Bushra’s bail. During the hearing, Imran Khan, currently imprisoned at Adiala jail, was presented before the court. His lawyer requested Bushra’s exemption from the proceedings on medical grounds. However, a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) official raised concerns about the authenticity of the medical report, as it was issued by Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital, but notarized in Islamabad.
Neither Khan nor Bushra submitted their statements under Section 342 of the CrPC, 1898, despite being given a 79-point questionnaire to complete at the previous hearing.
It’s worth mentioning that Bushra was granted bail last month after spending around nine months in Adiala jail in connection with the new Toshakhana case.
What is the £190 Million Case?
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) filed a reference in December 2023 against Khan, Bushra, and others, accusing them of a settlement with a property tycoon that allegedly resulted in a £190 million loss to Pakistan’s national treasury.
The charges allege that Khan and the other accused misused Rs50 billion (approximately £190 million) sent by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to Pakistan as part of the settlement. Bushra Bibi is accused of being involved due to her role as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust.
The couple is also accused of acquiring over 458 kanals of land in Mouza Bakrala, Sohawa, for the purpose of establishing Al Qadir University. During the PTI government’s tenure, the NCA seized assets worth £190 million from the property tycoon in the UK. The NCA stated that these assets would be transferred to the Government of Pakistan, but clarified that the settlement with the property tycoon was a civil matter, not a criminal judgment.
Following the settlement, then-Prime Minister Khan received cabinet approval for the deal on December 3, 2019, without revealing the details of the confidential agreement. The decision was made to submit the recovered money to the Supreme Court on behalf of the tycoon. A few weeks after the settlement, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad.
