IHC grants post-arrest bail to Bushra Bibi in new Toshakhana case

• IHC accepts Bushra's bail plea against surety bonds of Rs1m.
• Ex-first lady likely to be released today from Adiala jail: sources.
• PTI founder's wife neither wanted nor under arrest in any case.

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday accepted the post-arrest bail plea of Bushra Bibi, former first lady and wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, in the new Toshakhana case involving alleged illegal sale of state gifts.

The former first lady's bail plea was accepted against Rs1 million surety bonds during the hearing conducted by Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb.

The PTI founder's wife had moved the IHC on October 3 seeking bail in the jewellery set case. The petition, filed via Advocate Yousaf Chaudhry, contended that the petitioner was a housewife and the allegations against her were baseless.

It added that the investigation was not transparent and the case was aimed at keeping the petitioner in jail. It said that the same case was being run with different angles.

Previously, a trial court had terminated the post-arrest bail of the former first lady on September 30.

The case pertains to a reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the couple in August.

It involves a jewellery set gifted to Bushra by the Saudi crown prince when 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, and the duo kept it illegally, alleges the NAB's reference.

During the hearing today, the Federal Investigation Agency's (FIA) prosecutor Umair Majeed said that the jewellery set in the said case was priced while the suspects were in possession of it. However, he added, the market value of a jewellery item could not be determined until it was physically available.

Complaining that the state was not given an opportunity to estimate the price of jewellery set correctly, the FIA prosecutor said that the said item should be placed in an auction and should be priced accordingly.

The official further stressed that a gift remains the property of the state until legally purchased and maintained that as per the procedure, a gift can be bought four months after its price has been assessed.

"A state gift cannot be kept by a person without being bought first," noted Majeed.

In response to Justice Aurangzeb's question about what would happen if the Bvlgari (Bulgari) set was returned, the FIA prosecutor said: "There is a plea bargain in the NAB law, but there is no such provision in that law."

Speaking during the hearing, the judge remarked that an accurate estimate of the price of a Toshakhana gift can only assessed via an auction.

However, Justice Aurangzeb questioned why the PTI founder was made a suspect in the case if it was his wife who did not deposit the jewellery set in the Toshakhana.

To this, the FIA official contended that Khan was a public officeholder.

"This is a similar case to that of the Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa," remarked the judge.

"This case is slightly different from that," responded prosecutor Majeed.

After hearing the FIA official's arguments, the court then granted bail to the former first lady who's been incarcerated in the said case in Rawalpindi's Adiala jail.

'Bushra Bibi’s release seems unlikely today'

Speaking to the media outside Adiala Jail, Opposition Leader Omer Ayub Khan said Bushra Bibi’s release seemed unlikely today as a trial judge is not available.

“She is just a housewife, and shouldn’t be kept in jail. We know who’s controlling everything and why the judge is not present here,” he added.

He went on to say that the former first lady should not be in jail even for a single day as it will be unlawful after the court approved her bail.

“If judges are not performing their duty as they should be then it rendered Pakistan as a lawless state.”

NAB's reference

In its reference filed against Khan and Bushra, the accountability watchdog said 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.  

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 the 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.