Bushra Bibi was released from Adiala Jail
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan highlighted that the former first lady had “endured jail for nine months in extreme conditions with a lot of courage”.
RAWALPINDI ( WEB NEWS )
Imran Khan’s wife was released after legal action was taken by the jail administration, she was released on bail in the Tosha Khana 2 case.
After her release from Adiala Jail, she left for Bani Gala. In the evening Bushra BiBi reached Peshawar.
Yesterday, the Islamabad High Court had granted bail to the wife of the PTI founder and due to the non-availability of judges, the appeal for her release could not be issued.
It should be noted that Imran Khan’s wife stayed in jail for a total of 9 months, she was sentenced to 14 years in prison on January 31 this year in Tosha Khana case
After the verdict of punishment, Bushra Bibi himself came to the jail and was arrested, later he was transferred to Bani Gala instead of Adiala Jail, Commissioner Islamabad declared Bani Gala as a sub-jail.
The Islamabad High Court had suspended Imran Khan’s Tosha Khana sentence, but he was re-arrested in Tosha Khana Two.
The release from Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail comes a day after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted her bail against surety bonds worth Rs1 million in the new Toshakhana case.
Special Judge (central) Shahrukh Arjumand issued Bushra’s release orders, after her counsels Malik Tariq Mehmood Noon and Sohail Satti submitted surety bonds worth Rs1 million. “The bail of the accused in the above-mentioned case has been approved by the high court,” the release order said, adding that “if the accused is not wanted in any other case, then they should be released on confirmation”.
The former first lady was arrested after a court on January 31 convicted and sentenced the couple to 14 years in prison after finding them guilty of retaining and selling state gifts in violation of government rules (Toshakhana case) while Imran Khan was in power.
Her release was expedited compared to the usual legal process, as typically, when a robkar (release order) is issued, the imprisoned person is released within two hours. However, Bushra Bibi was released in just 20 minutes.
While media personnel and PTI workers waited outside the prison to engage with Imran Khan’s wife, the former first lady quickly departed without speaking to anyone. However, the workers showered her car with flowers as it sped away.
The IHC granted her bail on Wednesday, but due to the absence of a judge to sign the release order, she remained behind bars. On Thursday, Judge Shahrukh Arjumand signed her robkar.
The former first lady was arrested in the said case along with her husband, who remains behind bars in the same facility, soon after their acquittal in the iddat case — also known as the un-Islamic nikah case.
However, her legal woes have seemingly witnessed a respite as she exited the Adiala jail via its gate number 5.
The reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reference involves a case related to a jewellery set gifted to Bushra Bibi by the Saudi Crown Prince when her husband Imran Khan was the prime minister of the country from 2018 to 2022.
The jewellery set — comprising a ring, bracelet, necklace a pair of earrings — was gifted to the former first lady on her visit to Saudi Arabia in May 2021, as per the NAB’s reference. It said the PTI founder and his wife illegally kept the jewellery set.
It added that the deputy military secretary briefed the Toshakhana section officer to estimate and declare the price of the jewellery set. The jewellery set, it mentioned, was not deposited in Toshakhana.
The jewellery company sold the necklace for €300,000 and earrings for €80,000 on May 25, 2018. The information regarding the price of the bracelet and ring could not be obtained from the company.
On May 28, 2021, the price of the jewellery set was estimated at Rs70.56 million; the price of the necklace was Rs50.64 million and the price of the earrings included in the jewellery valued at Rs10.50 million back then.
According to the rules, the 50% price of the jewellery set is approximately Rs30.57 million.
The national exchequer suffered a loss of approximately Rs30.28 after the jewellery was undervalued.
As per the reference, the PTI founder and his wife violated the NAB Ordinance. It added that an inquiry was initiated against the former first couple on the instructions of NAB chairman on August 1, 2022.
“PTI founder and Bushra Bibi have misused their powers. PTI founder retained 58 out of 108 gifts during his prime ministership,” read the reference.
PTI confirmed that Bushra Bibi had reached Bani Gala, in a post on X at 3:12 PM.
The PTI hailed the release of its founder’s wife: “Welcome back Bushra Bibi!”
“You have faced extremely difficult times, disgusting campaign and character assassination attempts against your during your illegal time in jail. The Pakistani nation salutes your bravery!” the party said on X.
Speaking outside Adiala Jail, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan highlighted that the former first lady had “endured jail for nine months in extreme conditions with a lot of courage”.
He said that despite all the hardships, Bushra had stood by Imran’s vision, adding that he was hopeful of Imran’s release soon.
On rumours of a deal being settled between Imran and the powers that be, Gohar said that if it was possible to get Bushra out of jail via a deal, she would not have stayed imprisoned until now. “Khan sahib would not have been in jail for 16 months [either],” Gohar said.
Responding to a question about how Bushra was finally released today instead of being re-arrested, as in previous cases, Gohar quipped: “In what else case could they have arrested her in.”