The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Monday dropped the Toshakhana case against former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi. The accountability court has now transferred the reference to a special judge in Central Islamabad following NAB’s request.
A prosecutor explained that due to restored amendments in NAB laws, the Toshakhana case no longer falls under the bureau’s jurisdiction. The lawyer representing Khan argued that the case should be dismissed entirely based on these legal changes.
Despite this development, Khan will remain in custody as he still faces multiple cases linked to the violent protests of May 9, which followed his arrest at the Islamabad High Court in a separate graft case.
This decision follows Khan’s request for acquittal in NAB-related cases, made after a Supreme Court ruling. Last week, the Supreme Court dismissed Khan’s challenge to declare the NAB amendments invalid, upholding the federal and provincial governments’ appeals that reinstated the amendments. The court’s detailed verdict noted that Khan failed to provide sufficient reasoning for the invalidation of the NAB changes.
Khan, 71, has been held at Adiala Jail for over a year after his conviction in several cases, including two Toshakhana references. His sentences in these references were suspended, and earlier this year, the Islamabad High Court also acquitted him in the cipher case.