The Islamabad High Court has adjourned the hearing of the appeals filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi against their convictions in the £190 million reference for another two weeks, giving the defence team a final chance to begin arguments. The court made it clear that the case would not be allowed to suffer further unnecessary delays at the next hearing.
During the hearing on Monday, the court also disposed of the contempt of court petitions filed by Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi. The court ruled that these petitions were no longer effective after the signing of the power of attorney required to pursue the appeals was completed, so no further action was required on them.
A two-member bench headed by Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfaraz Dogar directed the defence lawyers during the hearing to begin their arguments on the main appeals. However, the defence took the position that a petition related to the matter is also under hearing in the Supreme Court, so it would not be appropriate to begin arguments immediately.
The court remarked that if the defence is not ready to present arguments, then the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor can be heard. On this occasion, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and senior lawyer Latif Khosa sought more time from the court and assured that the defence would present its position with full preparation at the next hearing.
Granting a two-week time limit, the court termed it the last chance and said that the trial would not be further unnecessarily delayed. The court also emphasised that repeated adjournment requests create the impression of putting pressure on the court proceedings.
On the other hand, on the same day, a separate bench of the Islamabad High Court dismissed the objections raised by the Registrar Office on the petitions related to the alleged solitary confinement of Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi. The court directed that both the petitions be allotted regular numbers and scheduled for hearing, while their legal status and admissibility would be decided later.
The petitioners’ lawyers argued before the court that the two leaders have been kept in solitary confinement for several months, where they have limited access to family meetings and other facilities. On the other hand, the NAB prosecutor opposed the allegations, arguing that the matter has already been taken up in court and that the appropriate legal forum is already available.
The court, dismissing the objections of the Registrar’s Office, adjourned further hearing of the petitions till the next day so that detailed arguments on preliminary legal points could be heard.
It may be recalled that the Accountability Court had sentenced Imran Khan to 14 years in prison and Bushra Bibi to seven years in prison in the £190 million reference, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case, in January 2025. Both had filed appeals in the Islamabad High Court immediately after the verdict, which will now be heard again in the next two weeks.
