£190m graft case: IHC to hear Imran, Bushra’s pleas for sentence suspensions on March 11

Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has admitted for hearing the application seeking suspension of the sentence of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan in the £190 million case (Al-Qadir Trust case). Accepting the request for an early hearing, the court has fixed March 11 for formal proceedings.

The Registrar’s Office has scheduled these applications for hearing tomorrow before Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Azam Khan.

It is important to note that, at this stage, the main suspension of sentence petitions have not yet been formally listed. Only miscellaneous applications related to the request for an early hearing have been fixed. The last hearing on the suspension of sentence petitions was held on September 26, 2025. The PTI founder had also filed a request for early hearing on medical grounds.

Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court has directed that objections raised against the appeals filed by Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi in the Toshakhana-II case be removed. The court ordered that the appeals be assigned regular numbers and fixed for hearing.

Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro heard the miscellaneous applications seeking removal of objections and extension of time. Barrister Salman Safdar, Salman Akram Raja, other lawyers, and the three sisters of the PTI founder were present in court.

During the hearing, Salman Safdar told the court that it was his first appearance in the matter and that he did not wish to return empty-handed. The court responded by stating that both of his miscellaneous applications had been approved.

Barrister Salman Safdar argued that the Registrar’s Office had raised unnecessary objections to the appeals. He said they were not informed in a timely manner about certain objections and only became aware of them when the suspension of sentence applications were filed.

He further stated that objections included claims that the power of attorney was outdated and that page flags had not been affixed, although the Registrar’s Office later withdrew some of the objections itself.

Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro remarked that the court was granting seven days to remove the remaining objections. Smiling, he added that if there was an objection regarding page flags, it should also be complied with.

Subsequently, the court approved both miscellaneous applications for removal of objections and extension of time.

A detailed hearing on the suspension of sentence petitions will take place on March 11.