Court notes the receipt not been subjected to forensic examination; no proof that it was submitted to the ECP
Imran Khan and wife Bushra Bibi. Photo: File
ISLAMABAD:
A District and Sessions Court in Islamabad has granted pre-arrest bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former premier Imran Khan in six cases and to his wife, Bushra Bibi, in one case, according to written orders issued on Tuesday.
In the Toshakhana fake receipts case, the court approved pre-arrest bail for both the PTI founder and Bushra Bibi. The judge said the prosecution had failed to present any evidence against them.
The case alleges that Imran Khan and his wife produced fake receipts related to the sale of state gifts.
According to the written order issued by Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka, the prosecution told the court it had seen the alleged receipt on social media. The court noted that the receipt had not been subjected to forensic examination. It also observed that no proof had been provided to show that fake receipts were submitted to the Election Commission of Pakistan or the Cabinet Division.
The court also granted bail to Imran Khan in a case relating to alleged defamatory remarks against senior figures. The order said the prosecution was unable to produce any speech or other evidence showing that he had spoken against the Pakistan Army.
The judge further ruled that the prosecution failed to provide material establishing that the PTI founder had incited rebellion. In cases linked to the May 9 protests and attempted murder charges, the court said no evidence had been presented to substantiate the allegations.
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The decision stated that the PTI founder’s presence at the scene of the protests had not been established, and there was no evidence to show the demonstrations were carried out at his direction.
The court approved bail against surety bonds of Rs50,000 in each case.
Six cases have been registered against the PTI founder at Kohsar and Secretariat police stations in Islamabad, as well as in Karachi and other locations.
Toshakhana fake receipts case
Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were booked in a fraud case at Islamabad’s Kohsar Police Station for allegedly producing fake receipts for the sale of state gifts.
FIR charges Khan, Bushra Bibi, Shahzad Akbar, Zulfi Bukhari, and Farah Gogi with offences related to the creation of fake receipts and cheating.
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According to the FIR, the accused are alleged to have submitted counterfeit receipts to facilitate the buying and selling of Toshakhana gifts, using a forged signature for the purported transaction.
A local watch dealer, the complainant, claims that investigations revealed the accused had created false receipts in his name, using a forged letterhead from his shop to sell the gifts from Toshakhana.
“The accused attempted to damage the reputation of my business by generating fake invoices for Toshakhana gifts,” the complainant stated in the FIR.
The reference relates to allegations that the former Prime Minister failed to disclose details of the gifts he retained from Toshakhana during his tenure. This case was filed by lawmakers from the ruling coalition last year.
On December 20, a special court sentenced Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi to 17 years in prison each in the Toshakhana-II case, which centres on allegations that the couple unlawfully retained a Bulgari jewellery set gifted by the Saudi Crown Prince during an official visit to Saudi Arabia.
