PTI calls for 'transparent, judicially supervised' probe into 2018, 2024 elections

ISLAMABAD: ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has fixed June 29 for hearing the appeals filed by PTI founder Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi against their conviction in the £190 million National Crime Agency (NCA) case.

According to the cause list issued by the Registrar’s Office for the next week, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfaraz Dogar and Justice Muhammad Asif will hear the appeals.

The PTI founder and Bushra Bibi have also filed contempt of court petitions in connection with the matter. The petitions relate to the alleged delay in complying with the court’s direction regarding submission of signed powers of attorney.

The IHC had earlier directed that the powers of attorney be signed and submitted within seven days. However, during subsequent proceedings, the defence counsel informed the court that the documents could not be obtained due to procedural hurdles and difficulties in meeting the accused at Adiala Jail.

In a fresh response submitted before the IHC, the Superintendent of Adiala Jail claimed that the court was allegedly misled regarding the signing of the powers of attorney.

The jail superintendent stated that the powers of attorney were prepared after being signed on June 16 and that Barrister Salman Safdar, counsel for the PTI founder and Bushra Bibi, was informed through a text message on the same day. A screenshot of the message was also attached with the reply submitted before the court.

The response stated that the lawyers of Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi deliberately did not obtain the powers of attorney before the hearing held on June 18.

The development surprised the court as the defence had repeatedly taken the position that the required documents could not be obtained because of procedural delays. Barrister Salman Safdar had sought adjournments on multiple occasions, maintaining that he was unable to meet his clients at the jail to complete the formalities.

During an earlier hearing, the IHC division bench had warned the defence counsel that if arguments were not advanced on the next date of hearing, the court would proceed with the matter on the basis of available record.

The appeals challenge the verdict of the trial court in the £190 million case, in which Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were convicted. The case relates to allegations concerning the settlement of the UK’s National Crime Agency funds and the transfer of land for the Al-Qadir Trust.

Meanwhile, the PTI rejected the latest round of statements made by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the floor of the National Assembly regarding the legitimacy of the PTI government formed in 2018.

During an NA session on Tuesday, the premier, noting that Opposition Leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai had called the incumbent government “illegitimate”, asserted that the 2018 elections should be investigated.

He contended that if the government that came after those polls was legitimate, the incumbent government was also legitimate.

On Wednesday, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram said in a statement: “In a remarkable display of selective memory and political acrobatics, Shehbaz Sharif attempted to equate the current Form-47 regime with the 2018 elections, claiming that if one was legitimate, so is the other.

“PTI views this not as a defence but as a tacit admission that the February 2024 elections witnessed one of the most brazen thefts of the people’s mandate in the nation’s history,” he alleged.

He argued that while PTI founder Imran Khan had, after the 2018 elections, publicly offered to open the results of any constituency for independent investigation if the opposition harboured doubts, the current rulers were “visibly terrified of any forensic audit, biometric verification, or transparent scrutiny of their victory”.

“If Shehbaz Sharif truly believes his own rhetoric, why does his government recoil at the mere suggestion of an independent examination of the 2024 results? The answer lies in the fragile foundation of Form-47 itself,” he said, referring to the PTI’s allegations of tempering of election documents in 2024.

Akram called on the government to conduct a full, transparent and judicially supervised audit of both the 2018 and 2024 elections so that the people of Pakistan and the world can see whose claim to public trust was genuine.

Speaking about the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), the party spokesperson expressed concern over the reported massive irregularities in the scheme, which a news outlet quoted the Auditor General of Pakistan’s audit report for the financial year 2024-25.

“More than Rs25 billion has been disbursed through highly suspicious and illegal channels. Even more shockingly, Rs3.17bn was spent without parliamentary approval or ICPC clearance, a clear case of financial lawlessness”, Akram claimed.

He alleged that through the deliberate manipulation of data systems and spouse data profiling, over 600,000 ineligible individuals, including government employees, siphoned off funds meant exclusively for poor widows, orphans and destitute families.

Akram demanded an immediate Supreme Court-monitored judicial inquiry into the BISP irregularities, as well as the “full and immediate recovery of every rupee from all involved officials with the harshest legal action”.

He further demanded suspensions and criminal prosecution of all BISP officials and IT personnel involved in data tampering.

Meanwhile, on the recent unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Akram expressed deep alarm over the political and administrative situation in the region.

He strongly condemned the government’s “negligence”, claiming that it chose “the path of force, arbitrary arrests, and inflammatory rhetoric”. For its part, the AJK government has asserted it has tried to resolve the dispute with the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) peacefully.

This approach, he warned, “was pushing the sensitive region towards greater instability and public alienation”.

Akram announced that PTI would pursue all available legal avenues against PM Shehbaz, the Punjab government and the relevant jail authorities for “endangering Imran Khan’s health and life”.

He also demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all PTI prisoners, including Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Dr Yasmin Rashid, and other leaders.