Chief Justice
ISLAMABAD: Imran Khan, the leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), received a significant relief from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) when it deemed the criminal proceedings in the Toshakhana case against him inadmissible.
The IHC chief justice Justice Aamir Farooq delivered the verdict after considering the arguments. The former Prime Minister’s legal representative, Khawaja Haris, contended that the complaint should have been filed in the Magistrate’s Court rather than directly in the session court.
A file photo of Islamabad High Court building in Islamabad.
The Toshakhana case has been the subject of controversy since April, when official documents revealed that Imran Khan and his wife possessed 52 valuable gifts without paying for them.
These gifts, received between August 2018 and December 2021, are worth millions of rupees.
The revelation of this secret list of gifts has sparked accusations of concealing information from tax authorities during Imran Khan’s tenure. The case has brought the Toshakhana, a department responsible for documenting precious gifts given to high-ranking individuals by foreign dignitaries, into the spotlight.
The government at the time argued that disclosing information about the Toshakhana could strain international relations.
However, the list of gifts exposes a wide array of luxurious items retained by the couple.
These include seven Rolex watches, various other expensive timepieces, gold and diamond jewelry, an expensive pen, cufflinks worth millions, dinner sets, perfumes, and even an Oud fragrance.
The most valuable gift among them was a remarkable Graff wristwatch worth Rs85 million, presented by Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman during Imran Khan’s first visit to the kingdom.
Astonishingly, the former prime minister retained this extravagant timepiece by paying a mere Rs20 million, raising concerns about the substantial difference between the assessed value and the amount paid.
With the recent ruling by the Islamabad High Court, Imran Khan finds himself relieved from the criminal proceedings related to the Toshakhana case.
