The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has granted bail to Imran Khan, the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in connection with the £190 million National Crime Agency (NCA) settlement case. The decision came after a hearing during which a two-member bench, comprising IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, reserved its verdict on Imran Khan’s bail petition.
Imran Khan has been ordered to be released on bail upon furnishing a surety bond of Rs1 million, with a detailed order to be issued subsequently. Despite this development, Khan remains incarcerated due to previous convictions in other cases, including the Toshakhana case and charges related to cipher and illegal marriage.
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The £190 million settlement case involves corruption allegations against Imran Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, and other PTI leaders in a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) inquiry. This inquiry pertains to a settlement agreement between the PTI government and a property tycoon, which allegedly caused a loss of £190 million to the national exchequer.
It is alleged that Khan and other accused individuals received benefits from Rs50 billion (£190 million) transferred by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government as part of an agreement with the property tycoon. They are also accused of acquiring over 458 kanals of land to establish Al Qadir University in exchange for undue benefits.
During Imran Khan’s tenure as prime minister, the NCA seized assets worth £190 million from the property tycoon in Britain. The NCA clarified that this settlement was a civil matter and did not imply a finding of guilt.
Prime Minister Khan obtained cabinet approval for the settlement with the UK crime agency on December 3, 2019, without disclosing the details of the agreement. The funds were designated to be submitted to the Supreme Court on behalf of the tycoon.
Following this, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad, with Zulfi Bukhari, Babar Awan, Bushra Bibi, and Farah Khan initially appointed as members. The property tycoon transferred 458 kanals of land to Bukhari, a close aide of Imran Khan, who later transferred it to the trust. Subsequently, Bukhari and Awan opted out as trustees, and the trust is now registered in the names of Khan, Bushra Bibi, and Farah.
NAB officials launched a probe into the alleged misuse of powers in the recovery of funds received from the UK crime agency, which later transformed into an investigation based on “irrefutable evidence.”
According to NAB officials, Imran Khan and his wife obtained land worth billions of rupees from the property tycoon in exchange for providing legal cover for the tycoon’s funds received from the UK crime agency.
