Imran and Bushra want urgent hearing to postpone convictions in £190 million case.

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have filed an appeal with the IHC for an expedited hearing on their pleas to postpone their convictions in the £190 million case.

Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were found guilty earlier this year in the £190 million case. Imran Khan was sentenced to 14 years in prison, and Bushra Bibi received a seven-year sentence. Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana issued the order in a courtroom at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail.

In addition to the prison sentences, the court fined Imran Rs1 million and Bushra Rs500,000. If the fines are not paid, Imran Khan will serve an additional six months in prison, while Bushra Bibi would serve an additional three months.

The ruling further said that the property of the “sham trust,” Al-Qadir University Project Trust, will be forfeited to the Federal Government in compliance with Section 10(a) of the National Accountability Ordinance of 1999.

According to records obtained by the Express Tribune, the applications were submitted on Tuesday by Barrister Salman Safdar, who urged the court to schedule a hearing “without any further delay, as the petitions involve fundamental issues of liberty and freedom.”

The petition also states that the announcement of the ruling has been postponed three times, creating questions about the impartiality and openness of the legal process.

The petition argues that “the appeal against the conviction was formally filed on January 27, 2025. However, the Registrar’s Office filed objections, which were later overruled, resulting in needless delays.”

Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi voiced worry about the case’s continuous delays imposed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which has sought adjournments. Despite court guarantees, the suspension of sentencing has yet to be reconsidered.

“NAB has repeatedly sought adjournments on the pretext of engaging special prosecutors in this matter,” according to the application.

The petition notes that the case has previously been scheduled for hearings four times. However, despite assurances to the counsel that a brief delay would be granted and an appropriate date appointed to resolve the suspension applications, no date has yet been offered.
It further mentions that the Special Prosecutor attended at the following session but again requested more time. “The applicant is facing repeated prosecutions, and in two cases, he has already been acquitted, while in the Toshakhana case, this Honourable Court suspended his sentence with the consent of the prosecutor,” the petition says.

The plea contends that, given the urgency of the situation and the nature of the relief requested, there should be no legal or administrative hurdles to scheduling the application for sentence postponement. This case directly addresses the basic right to liberty granted by Pakistan’s Constitution of 1973.

The petition further says that the right to be treated according to the law is a basic right under Article 4 of Pakistan’s Constitution, which is being denied to the petitioners owing to unfair delays.

The right to liberty, protected by Article 9, is also being violated because the request for sentence suspension is being delayed unreasonably. Despite judicial policy that prioritizes bail and suspension petitions, the applicants’ cases are being deprioritized without legal cause.