The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued a notice to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) regarding the bail petitions filed by former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, in the new Toshakhana reference case. The couple was taken into custody after their acquittal in the Iddat case and has pleaded that they were illegally remanded into NAB’s custody, affecting their fundamental rights of liberty.
The case was initially taken up by a division bench comprising IHC Chief Justice Amir Farooq and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz. However, Imran Khan’s counsel requested the IHC CJ to recuse himself from the case, citing a complaint filed against him in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). Although the CJ rejected the request, a new bench was formed due to Justice Imtiaz’s summer vacation.
The case is now being heard by a separate division bench comprising Justices Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Arbab Muhammad Tahir. In a related development, the Lahore High Court (LHC) has removed an objection to Bushra Bibi’s petition against her arrest in the third Toshakhana case and directed it to be fixed for a hearing.
Bushra Bibi’s petition claims that she and her husband were granted bail in the Toshakhana case but were re-arrested in a new case with malicious intent. The petition alleges that female officials assaulted and humiliated her during the arrest, and she was imprisoned as an act of political victimization.
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