ISLAMABAD: The Accountability Court’s ruling on the 190 million pound reference against the PTI founder has been suspended by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which cited the continuing trial court procedures. Judges Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Babar Sattar of the IHC division bench heard the PTI founder’s appeal and the registrar office’s objections.
Salman Safdar, the petitioner’s attorney, contended that 35 witnesses had previously testified in front of the trial court and that the final witness, the NAB investigation officer, was still being cross-examined. The court observed that only two of the eight people identified in the reference were the subjects of the trial; the other six were absconders.
According to the petitioner’s attorney, the NAB case claimed that the money was meant to reach a bank but ended up in the Supreme Court’s account. The petitioner was accused of aiding and abetting the 190 million pound scam. It was also noted by the court that the Al-Qadir Trust was not a registered trust. The attorney promised the court that further information on this subject would be presented at the following session.
Charges were framed on February 27 and the reference was filed on December 1, 2023. The PTI founder’s attorneys were warned by the court not to employ any kind of delay technique or the stay order will be rescinded. The court filed notifications to NAB and requested comments by Wednesday.
