Latest news with #ToshakhanaII
Business Recorder
7 days ago
- Politics
- Business Recorder
Aleema says IK has ordered launch of nationwide movement
RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan has instructed the party leadership to launch a full-scale nationwide movement against the government, his sister Aleema Khan said on Thursday. Speaking to reporters outside Adiala Jail, Aleema Khan revealed that Imran Khan has directed PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur to mobilise an effective campaign across the country. Addressing questions about the arrival of Khan's sons-Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Isa Khan-to Pakistan, Aleema said 'the former prime minister considers it their right to speak out in support of him.' Regarding the ongoing Toshakhana case, Aleema Khan condemned the treatment of Imran Khan inside Adiala Jail and the restrictions imposed during the court hearings. She stated that the legal team and family were only informed about the hearing hours before it began, and only two lawyers were allowed entry. Family members, other lawyers, and media personnel were barred from attending the session, she added. 'We waited outside the jail for four and a half hours,' Aleema told reporters, adding that Khan has been confined to a cell for 22 hours daily without access to newspapers, books, or television, and has only recently been provided with a single book. 'He has instructed his lawyers to inform the public about the inhumane conditions he is enduring in prison,' she said. Earlier, the special court, hearing the Toshakhana II case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, completed recording statements of nine prosecution witnesses. Special Judge Central Shahrukh Arjumand, while hearing the case at Adiala Jail, adjourned the case till July 26 after the defence completed the cross-examination of another prosecution witness Shafqat Mehmood. Khan's counsel Qausain Faisal Mufti also conducted a partial cross-examination over another witness Mohsin Hassan. Jail authorities produce Khan and his wife before the court. Prosecutor Zulfiqar Abbas Naqvi and Umair Majeed appeared before the court. The court adjourned hearing till July 26. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Business Recorder
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Business Recorder
Imran Khan's sons coming to Pakistan, claims Aleema Khan
Sons of incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan — Sulaiman and Kasim — will soon visit Pakistan, said the PTI founder's sister Aleema Khan on Thursday, adding that they were moving the court to facilitate the meeting between the sons and father. 'Imran's sons are coming to Pakistan to meet their father and legal channels are being used to make sure the meeting takes place,' she said speaking to media outside the Adiyala jail in Rawalpindi. Imran's two other sisters and senior lawyers Salman Akram Raja and Barrister Ali Zafar were also present on this occasion. They had come to the Adiyala jail to attend hearing of the Toshakhana II case, however, they were denied entry into the prison facility, said Raja. They also said details of the arrival and stay of Imran's sons cannot be disclosed at present. Aleema said they are approaching the court to get the required papers, so that the authorities could not deny their meeting, saying that they do not have a meeting paper. 'They will stay here as long as they want,' she said, responding to a question about duration of Kasim and Sulaiman's stay in the country. She stressed that it is their constitutional right to meet their father and she wants there to be no legal hurdle in this meeting. She said that a petition seeking permission for them to meet can be filed in the high court at any time. Imran Khan's sons meet US Congressman Brad Sherman Meanwhile, Imran's sons have launched a campaign in the US to get their father released from jail in Pakistan. They have met with US special presidential envoy Richard Grenell in California to kick off a campaign to garner international support in this regard. The brothers first launched a campaign in May, highlighting their father's imprisonment since August 2023 at Pakistan's Adiyala jail. Imran is facing multiple court cases, since his ouster from the Prime Minister's Office in April 2022 through a no-trust vote, including ongoing trials under the Anti‑Terrorism Act linked to the May 9, 2023, protests. The former prime minister is also serving a sentence related to a £190 million corruption conviction. Imran Khan's sons meet Trump aide to launch US campaign for father's release In a photo shared on X, Richard Grenell stood alongside the Khans and US Commission on International Religious Freedom Vice Chairman Dr Asif Mahmood. Grenell issued a rallying message: 'Stay strong… millions around the world are sick of political prosecutions. You are not alone.' The brothers also met US Representative Joe Wilson, Congressmen Brad Sherman, Andy Harris, Ted Lieu and Bill Huizenga and apprised about the alleged ill-treatment their father was facing in prison cell.
Express Tribune
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Imran, Bushra fail to get Eid relief
Imran Khan and Bushra Babi could not get a relief ahead of Eidul Azha as the Islamabad High Court (IHC) allowed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to appoint a special prosecutor to present its point of view on the couple's pleas seeking the suspension of their sentences in the £190m case. A division bench of the capital's high court, comprising IHC Acting Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Muhammad Asif, on Thursday took up the PTI founder's and his wife's applications, seeking their release on bail after suspension of their sentences in the corruption case. During the hearing, Barrister Salman Safdar, representing Imran and Bushra, quipped that they had managed to get the applications listed for hearing "after countless prayers and pleas". He claimed that cases Toshakhana I case, Toshakhana II, and then the £190 million case – were fabricated to keep the couple behind bars. "This is the most controversial verdict. The Supreme Court had made observations on the judge who delivered this verdict," he said. Islamabad Accountability Court-I Judge Nasir Javed Rana on January 17 sentenced former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi respectively to 14 and seven years in prison in the £190 million case In addition to the prison sentences, the court also imposed fines of Rs1 million on Imran and Rs500,000 on Bushra. The couple later challenged the verdict in the IHC. Referring to other cases, Safdar said the trial courts convict Imran and Bushra but high courts later state that the convictions are wrong and suspend such verdicts. NAB Prosecutor Rafiq Maqsood stated that he was informed about the case just a day earlier and received the notice only the previous night. "I request that since the federal government has to appoint a special prosecutor for this case, and correspondence is needed with the Ministry of Law, we should be granted four weeks' time," he said. Safdar, however, requested the court to decide Bushra's plea for suspension of her sentence prior to Eid." "If they want to bring a special team against the PTI founder, they can go aheadwe are not afraid," he added. Latif Khosa, who also belongs to the PTI, said Imran Khan is in jail without any evidence. "He has no intention of fleeing the country or tampering with the record," he said. The court remarked that the legal team should be given time to notify their representation. It adjourned the hearing until June 11.
Express Tribune
03-06-2025
- General
- Express Tribune
Imran takes up reins of PTI ahead of protest
PTI founder Imran Khan, while announcing that the door for talks with the powerful stakeholders was still open, declared on Tuesday that a nationwide protest movement was now the party's only remaining option. While taking back full control of party affairs by becoming PTI's patron-in-chief, the former premier said that he would lead a nationwide protest movement from prison, declaring it the party's only remaining path after allegedly being shut out of political and legal avenues. The new patron-in-chief named Opposition Leader in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub, to coordinate the protest campaign, apparently sidelining Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, who previously used to handle such responsibilities. The PTI supremo gave no timeline for the protest movement but said it would not be limited to Islamabad this time around. Khan once again clarified that his willingness to negotiate was only in Pakistan's broader interest, not for any personal relief. The announcements came through PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who met Khan at Adiala Jail during proceedings of the Toshakhana II case. Speaking to the media afterwards, PTI chairman said Khan believes that "all doors have been closed" on PTI and that a peaceful countrywide protest was now the only path forward. According to Gohar, Khan made it clear that he would head the protest movement himself, issuing all instructions through the NA opposition leader. Importantly, Gohar confirmed that this time the communication pertaining to the protest would not rely on Gandapur, who had previously been tasked with organising and leading such events. "For Ali Amin Khan Sahib," he said the instructions right now are: 'concentrate on the province and governance." "Different responsibilities will be assigned to different individuals," Gohar said, stressing that Khan has full trust in the party leadership and recognises the sacrifices made by many within the party ranks. In response to a question, he clarified that no date or time frame for the protest movement has been disclosed yet, saying Khan would determine the timing himself. To another question, Gohar confirmed that Khan has assumed the role of PTI's patron-in-chief, effectively reasserting full control over party decision-making. "From now on, all key decisions will be taken by the PTI founder," Gohar said, reiterating that he was the one who used to take all decisions before as well. "He was, is and will remain the leader forever," he said. Dismissing rumours about his own removal, Gohar insisted he remains the legitimate party chairman as long as Khan decides so, saying Khan was, is and will always remain the party supremo and he was only fulfilling duties until Khan was in jail. "These are just baseless rumours," he responded to the speculation, adding that some people were spreading rumours about his removal to create confusion. Gohar stressed that his own preference remains for dialogue over confrontation, saying he has always tried to resolve issues through negotiation and still wanted that. However, he added that Khan believes "no political path has been left open" for PTI, especially after what he described as alleged rigging in the recent Sambrial by-election on the heels of alleged mandate theft in the general elections.
Express Tribune
03-06-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Two witnesses record testimonies in gifts case
The Toshakhana is a repository which stores precious gifts given to rulers, parliamentarians, bureaucrats and other officials by heads of other governments and foreign dignitaries. PHOTO: FILE Two more prosecution witnesses on Tuesday gave their testimonies in a case related to alleged misuse of the official gift repository rules by PTI founder Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi during the former's term as the prime minister. Special Judge Central Shahrukh Arjumand conducted the hearing of the case in a courtroom inside Rawalpindi's Central Prison popularly known as Adiala Jail. Both Imran and Bushrawho are detained in the prison facility — attended the hearing. After the testimonies, the counsel for Imran, Arshad Tabriz, cross-examined both the witnesses. Lawyer of Bushra Bibi, Qosain Faisal Mufti, will cross examine the witnesses at the next hearing. Bushra Bibi had refused to attend the last hearing of the case — also called the Toshakhana II casedespite repeated summonses by the court. The judge had later warned of cancelling her bail in the case. The court will resume hearing on June 11. According to the charge-sheet, Imran misused his position to acquire a Bulgari jewelry set that the Saudi crown prince presented as a gift during the couple's visit to Saudi Arabia between May 7 and 10, 2021. The set included a ring, bracelet, necklace, and a pair of earrings. According to the evidence gathered during the investigation, Imran and Bushra unlawfully retained the set. On May 18, 2021, the deputy military secretary informed the section officer of Toshakhana about the need to assess and declare the price of the gift, but it was not deposited. Bulgari sold the necklace for 300,000 euros and the earrings for 80,000 euros to a Saudi franchise on May 25, 2018. However, the price of the bracelet and ring could not be determined. As of May 28, 2021, the total estimated value of the Bulgari jewelry set was approximately Rs75,661,600. The necklace alone was valued at Rs56,496,000, and the earrings at Rs15,065,600.
