Toshakhana reference: Court hearing adjourned till Dec 8
- Islamabad court records ECP official's statement, PTI chief does not appear in hearing
An Islamabad district and sessions court adjourned on Tuesday the hearing of a Toshakhana reference against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan till December 8 after the former PM reportedly failed to appear before the court.
Additional Sessions Judge Zafar Iqbal presided over the proceedings. The case is related to the incumbent government accusing Imran of corruption and selling gifts that are presented by other nations to the head of state and kept in the Toshakhana.
During the hearing, the court recorded the district election commissioner's statement, who said he had been authorised to pursue the case, adding that Imran had submitted his returns from 2018 to 2021.
Imran was summoned by the district and sessions court of Islamabad on Monday, which started the trial after receiving the reference of criminal proceedings from the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The court summons for Imran comes a month after the ECP disqualified him for making “false statements and incorrect declaration” in his election papers.
A notice was also issued to the PTI chairman to appear before the trial court of Islamabad on Tuesday (today).
Toshakhana Reference: IK summoned by district & sessions court
The Toshakhana reference was sent under Sections 137, 170, and 167 of the Election Act from the District Election Commissioner to the trial court with a request that Imran Khan should be tried for corrupt practice.
The commission sought a three-year jail term and imposition of fine as the punishment. It said that Imran allegedly mislead officials about the gifts he received from foreign dignitaries during his tenure as the premier.
Sale records of Toshakhana gifts available with govt: Imran Khan
Addressing his supporters last week, Imran said that the trail of sale of gifts from Toshakhana is available in government records.
Back in September, he submitted a 60-page reply in the Toshakhana case, dubbing the case against him as “misleading” and “false” and requesting the electoral body to dismiss it.
In his reply, he disclosed that some 329 official gifts were received when the PTI was in the federal government. Out of these gifts, 58 were received by him and his wife, and only 14 of these gifts were valued at more than Rs14,000 each.
The former PM further maintained that all the details of the gifts he lawfully bought from Toshakhana were duly declared at the relevant forums including the tax returns (filed with the Federal Board of Revenue – FBR) and the wealth statements (filed with the ECP).
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