Pakistan court rejects Imran Khan acquittal plea in £190 million land bribe case

Security officers escort Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan, as he appeared in Islamabad High Court, Islamabad, Pakistan May 12, 2023. (REUTERS/File)
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Updated 13 September 2024
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Pakistan court rejects Imran Khan acquittal plea in £190 million land bribe case

  • Khan and his wife are accused of receiving land worth millions of dollars as a bribe from a real estate tycoon 
  • Khan aides say land donated to a trust for charitable purposes, real estate developer denies wrongdoing

ISLAMABAD: An accountability court on Thursday turned down acquittal pleas by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife in a case in which they are accused of receiving land worth millions of dollars as a bribe from a real estate tycoon through the Al-Qadir Trust, the party said on Friday. 
The charitable trust was set up by Khan and his third wife Bushra Khan in 2018 when still in office. Pakistani authorities have accused Khan and Bushra of receiving the land, worth up to 7 billion rupees ($25 million), from a property developer charged in Britain with money laundering.
Authorities accused Khan of getting the land in exchange for a favor to the property developer by using 190 million pounds repatriated by Britain in the money laundering probe to pay fines levied by a court against the developer. Khan’s aides have previously said that the land was donated to the trust for charitable purposes. The real estate developer has also denied any wrongdoing.
The acquittal plea was filed following a Supreme Court verdict last week restoring amendments to the country’s anti-graft laws approved in 2022 that Khan’s PTI party said had put the land bribe case outside the jurisdiction of the National Accountability Bureau, which had filed and is currently investigating it.
“Acquittal plea rejected on Thursday,” the PTI said in a statement to reporters on Friday morning. “Accountability court asked defendants’ counsel to start with cross questioning.”
The National Accountability (Amendment) Act, 2022 limited the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) jurisdiction to cases involving corruption of over Rs500 million, reduced the term of the chairman of the bureau and prosecutor general to three years and transferred all pending inquiries, investigations and trials to other authorities. The amendments were passed by the then coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during his first term as PM from 2022-2023.
Imran Khan, who had at the time recently been ousted as prime minister through a vote of no-confidence in parliament, petitioned the top court against the amendments, claiming they were passed to benefit the influential, including top politicians, and would legitimize corruption in the country. 
In September last year, the Supreme Court, led by then Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, declared changes to the National Accountability Ordinance unlawful and ordered the restoration of corruption cases against public office holders that were withdrawn after amendments in the law came into effect.
The federal government led by PM Sharif and other parties filed intra-court appeals against the judgment, which were accepted by a five-member Supreme Court bench led by the current chief justice, Qazi Faez Isa. 
Last Friday, the Supreme Court announced that it was restoring all the changes to the accountability law.
Khan, who has been in jail since August last year in a slew of cases, had also become a beneficiary of the restored amendments, his party said after the ruling, arguing that he could now move the courts for acquittal in at least two major corruption cases, namely the land bribe case and an investigation involving the illegal sale of state gifts while he was PM.
“Detailed verdict is awaited but in the light of short order, it’s safe to say new Toshakhana [state gifts] case against Imran Khan can no longer continue as it exceeds Rs500 million cap, making it ineffective, as per the new amendments,” Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party said in a statement to media after Friday’s SC judgment. 
“It will also impact the £190 million case.”


Pakistan reports four new polio cases, appeals to parents to get children inoculated

Updated 08 October 2024
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Pakistan reports four new polio cases, appeals to parents to get children inoculated

  • The South Asian country plans to launch a nationwide polio vaccination campaign from Oct. 28 to vaccinate over 45 million children
  • A major initiative is also underway in targeted districts to vaccinate children who missed doses against polio, other childhood diseases

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has reported four new cases of poliovirus as an outbreak of the disease continues to expand, the country’s polio program said on Tuesday, with health officials appealing to parents to get their children vaccinated against the crippling disease.
A laboratory for polio eradication at the National Institute of Health in Islamabad confirmed the detection of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in two children in the Jacobabad district and one child in Malir district of the Sindh province and one more in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, bringing the nationwide tally to 32 this year.
In a statement, Ayesha Raza Farooq, the prime minister’s focal person for polio eradication, urged parents and caregivers to fulfil their duty and ensure their polio vaccination when polio teams visit their homes from October 28 in a nationwide campaign to vaccinate more than 45 million children.
“This should be a wake-up call for all parents and communities. Every paralytic polio case means there are hundreds of children who are silently affected by poliovirus and are potentially carrying and spreading it throughout their communities,” she said.
“Today, every child is at risk, and it is unfortunate that children are facing the real consequences of missing vaccination because of misguided decisions and misperceptions about the vaccine.”
Anwarul Haq, coordinator of the National Emergency Operations Center for polio eradication, said the WPV1 virus had been detected in sewage samples of all the above districts, indicating that the virus was widely circulating across the country. 
“Our team from the National Emergency Operations Center is fully engaged and supporting both provinces [Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa] in their response to the outbreak,” he said.
“We are conducting joint case investigations, preparing to implement high quality vaccination rounds and providing high-risk communities with integrated health service delivery to build children’s immunity.” 
There is no cure for polio, and paralysis caused by an infection is irreversible, according to the Pakistan polio program. Apart from the nationwide polio campaign from October 28, a major initiative, led by the expanded program for immunization, is also underway in targeted districts to vaccinate those children against 12 childhood diseases, including polio, who have missed their doses or have not completed their vaccination course.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries where polio remains an endemic. Since late 2018, Pakistan has seen a resurgence of cases and increased spread of poliovirus, highlighting the fragility of gains achieved in the preceding three years.


UK population rises to 68.3 million driven by immigration from Pakistan, other countries

Updated 08 October 2024
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UK population rises to 68.3 million driven by immigration from Pakistan, other countries

  • Britain has seen high immigration in recent years from economic migrants and those who arrive via irregular crossings in boats
  • New work visa rules led to a surge in immigration from India, Nigeria and Pakistan, often to fill health and social care vacancies

LONDON: The United Kingdom’s population grew by 1 percent in annual terms to 68.3 million as of mid-2023, mainly due to high immigration, official data showed on Tuesday.
Net international migration was the main contributor to population increase for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland — which together form the UK — in the year to mid-2023, Britain’s Office for National Statistics said.
The natural change in population, which is the difference between births and deaths, fell by 16,300. Previous projections from the ONS suggested a negative reading would not occur until the mid-2030s.
Britain has seen high immigration in recent years from economic migrants and those who arrive via irregular crossings in small boats — a hot political topic because of stretched public services after years of under-investment.
Record immigration caused the population of England and Wales to rise by 610,000 in mid-2023, the largest annual rise in 75 years. Net migration to Britain in 2015, the year before the Brexit referendum, was 329,000.
The population grew faster in England and in Wales, both seeing a 1 percent rise, when compared to Scotland with 0.8 percent growth or Northern Ireland which posted a 0.5 percent increase, the ONS said on Tuesday.
While post-Brexit changes to visas saw a sharp drop in the number of European Union migrants to Britain, new work visa rules led to a surge in immigration from India, Nigeria and Pakistan, often to fill health and social care vacancies.
In August some far-right groups took to the streets to protest against migrants, an early challenge to the newly elected Labour government.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who scrapped the previous Conservative government’s plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda since taking office in July, has said that his approach to illegal migration would be pragmatic and mark a change from the last leadership.


KSRelief signs Rs4 billion deal for rebuilding Pakistan’s disaster-hit communities

Updated 08 October 2024
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KSRelief signs Rs4 billion deal for rebuilding Pakistan’s disaster-hit communities

  • Pakistan is fifth-largest beneficiary of Saudi aid agency, which has completed 214 projects in the country since 2005
  • KSRelief will build 1,000 permanent houses for families displaced by 2022 floods and 300 community feeder schools

ISLAMABAD: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief) on Tuesday signed 12 agreements with different Pakistani institutions for a series of key public facilitation projects worth Rs4 billion ($14.41 million) aimed at rebuilding communities affected by natural disasters.

The Saudi organization has one of the largest humanitarian budgets available to any aid agency worldwide, which has allowed its officials to undertake a wide variety of projects in more than 100 countries.

Pakistan is the fifth-largest beneficiary of its aid and humanitarian activities and has greatly benefited from its assistance since the 2022 monsoon floods. The Saudi aid agency has completed 214 projects worth more than $184.6 million since 2005.

“Today, King Salman Relief Centre announced a series of key public facilitation projects worth about Rs4 billion aimed at rebuilding communities in Pakistan affected by natural disasters,” KSRelief said in a statement released after a ceremony in Islamabad.

Engineer Ahmed Ali Al-Baiz, Assistant Supervisor General of Operations at the aid agency, signed four different joint cooperation programs with Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), National Commission for Human Development (NCHD), Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS), and the State Earthquake Reconstruction & Rehabilitation Authority (SERRA).

Additionally, eight different contracts for public facilitation projects were formalized.

The event was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki, representatives of NDMA, PRCS, and various UN missions in Pakistan.

Al-Baiz told Arab News on the sidelines of the event that the KSRelief office in Pakistan was one of the biggest outside the kingdom.

“The [recently signed] projects relate to health, education, housing, and disaster preparedness, where the King Salman Relief Center will spend more than $14 million,” he said.

KSRelief said it would focus on the construction of the national humanitarian response facility for NDMA, which will significantly enhance the country’s ability to store and distribute relief supplies during emergencies.

Additionally, it aims to build 1,000 permanent houses for families displaced by the 2022 floods, providing safe housing for nearly 7,000 individuals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces.

The Saudi aid agency’s future projects also include the construction of 300 community feeder schools across Pakistan, particularly in underserved regions like Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir.

“Upon completion, these schools will be handed over to the National Commission for Human Development (NCHD), ensuring long-term sustainability and management,” KSRelief added.

It also plans to renovate 22 critical facilities, including schools, health centers, and water projects previously constructed in response to the 2005 earthquake and 2010 floods, to improve access to education, healthcare, and clean water.

Addressing the ceremony, the deputy prime minister said the Saudi-Pakistan agreements reflect the time-tested and fraternal relations between the two states.

“The kingdom’s generous pledge to construct 1,000 housing units and 300 schools across Pakistan and rehabilitate 22 previously implemented projects showcases the scale of ongoing humanitarian assistance being offered and implemented,” he said.

Dar assured KSRelief of the government’s continued support and assistance in carrying out the important work they are doing for the people of Pakistan.

Idrees Mehsud, a senior NDMA official, said the new projects would go a long way in developing resilience within the country during times of disaster.

“Today’s agreements will be another milestone as the NDMA is being supported by KSRelief in its endeavors to shift its response-oriented approach to a more proactive one,” he added.

The Saudi ambassador said KSRelief was at the forefront of serving humanity, adding that it was continuing its support for Pakistan and its people.

“This project is over $14 million and is to build about 1,000 housing units, 300 schools, and four storage facilities,” he told Arab News.


Weekend protests by ex-PM Khan party cost Islamabad, Rawalpindi businesses $21.6 million losses — traders

Updated 08 October 2024
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Weekend protests by ex-PM Khan party cost Islamabad, Rawalpindi businesses $21.6 million losses — traders

  • Hundreds of Khan supporters set out for Islamabad from various parts of Pakistan on Friday to take part in a protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk square
  • Clashes erupted as police tried to prevent the protesters from entering the capital, choking the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad for two days

ISLAMABAD: Businesses in Pakistan’s twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi incurred more than Rs6 billion ($21.6 million) losses due to protests by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) opposition party over the weekend, traders said on Tuesday.
Hundreds of Khan supporters set out for Islamabad from various parts of the country on Friday to take part in a protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk square. Clashes erupted as police tried to prevent the protesters from entering the Pakistani capital, resulting in the killing of one policeman.
Dozens were injured on both sides as police used tear gas to disperse Khan supporters. The twin cities remained heavily barricaded as authorities suspended mobile phone services, with retail, wholesale and distribution business as well as industry remaining shut for two days.
“The cumulative losses to businesses and traders in Islamabad and Rawalpindi run over 6 billion rupees due to closure of roads and blockade of mobile and Internet services,” Fahad Barlas, vice president of the Rawalpindi Chambers of Commerce and Industry, told Arab News.
“Apart from the financial losses, we suffer a reputational loss in terms of dealing with our foreign clients, booking the orders, and such protests take us months to restore all that.”
The PTI called simultaneous protests in all districts across the most populous Punjab province to protest the government’s proposed constitutional amendments that it claims are aimed at curtailing the independence of the judiciary, a charge denied by the government. The party also aimed to mobilize supporters through these public gatherings to pressure the government for the release of Khan, who has been in prison since August last year on a slew of charges.
Additionally, the federal and provincial governments spent a substantial amount on security, placement of shipping containers and barriers to block roads, food for law enforcement personnel and tear gas.
Arab News reached out to the Pakistani interior ministry and the Punjab home department, but did not get a response to its questions, seeking details of the expenses on security arrangements for the protests and any losses to the public property.
Nasir Qureshi, president of the Islamabad Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said the recent closure of roads and Internet services due to the protests had disrupted entire supply chains, which could take weeks to recover.
“Traders could not go to the banks to get their LCs [letters of credit] opened, the IT sector and all other businesses were hit by the roads and Internet closures,” he said, suggesting that the government should allow protests at a designated place in the federal capital to avoid disruptions to businesses and public life.
“The government suffers losses in taxation when the businesses are closed while individual traders, daily wagers, contractors and consumers have to face financial losses.”


Government justifies ban on Pashtun rights group, cites alleged militant links, anti-state activities

Updated 08 October 2024
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Government justifies ban on Pashtun rights group, cites alleged militant links, anti-state activities

  • Pakistan’s Interior Ministry recently declared the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement a ‘proscribed organization’
  • Information minister says PTM ‘burned the Pakistani flag, attacked Pakistani embassies’ in other states

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar announced on Tuesday that the government’s decision to ban the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) stemmed from its alleged links to militant groups and involvement in anti-state activities.
PTM, a prominent Pashtun rights group, has long advocated against extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances of Pashtuns and other ethnic minorities in Pakistan. While its leaders have contested and won national elections in the country’s northwestern region, the movement has yet to gain significant influence in Pakistan’s parliament.
On Sunday, Pakistan’s Interior Ministry declared the PTM a “proscribed organization,” citing activities harmful to the nation’s peace and security.
“If you look at the activities of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement over the past six months, [you will see] how they have burned the Pakistani flag, attacked Pakistan’s embassies abroad and not only attacked embassies but also actively funded the promotion of an anti-Pakistan narrative,” Tarar said in a televised statement.
He said the PTM had carried out such activities with the help of Afghan nationals.
“Not only do they have links with TTA or Tehreek-e-Taliban Afghanistan but also Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan,” he continued while referring to the Taliban administration in Kabul and a banned militant network reportedly operating from Afghanistan while targeting Pakistani civilians and security forces.
Earlier this year in July, a group of Afghan nationals stormed the Pakistani consulate in Frankfurt, Germany, pelting stones at the building and desecrating the Pakistani flag.
The administration in Islamabad formally lodged a protest with the German authorities, urging them to arrest and prosecute those responsible and to ensure better security for its diplomatic missions.
PTM has previously denied any links with militant groups or violent entities, pointing out that it believes in waging peaceful struggle for the rights of Pashtuns in Pakistan.
“Whenever an organization is declared proscribed,” the minister added, “it is done on the basis of evidence.”
The PTM alleges Pashtuns have faced rights abuses during Pakistan’s war against militants, mainly in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It blames Pakistan’s powerful military for rights abuses in the northwestern province, a charge the institution has consistently denied.