Islamabad: The Special Judge Central has issued a detailed order dismissing the acquittal petition of the founder of PTI and Bushra Bibi. The 5-page detailed order mentioned various allegations regarding the dismissal of the petitions of the accused.
The detailed order issued by Special Judge Central Shahrukh Arjumand states that the petitioners are accused of receiving a Bulgarian jewelry set from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia in 2021. The jewelry set included a bracelet, ring, earrings and necklace. The said gift was allegedly not deposited in the Toshakhana.
The detailed order further states that the Deputy Military Secretary had informed about the jewelry set along with the determination of the price. The price was determined by private appraiser Sohaib Abbas and then by customs officials. Influence was used to obtain an undervalue estimate.
After the amendment in the Toshakhana laws in 2018, every gift received must be deposited in the Toshakhana, the Bulgarian jewelry set was not deposited in the Toshakhana nor was the correct price assessed, according to private appraiser Sohaib Abbas, the petitioner’s private secretary Inam Shah pressured for a lower valuation, only the evidence presented in the court can help the court reach a conclusion.
The evidence presented by the prosecution cannot be ignored, the prosecution should be given a fair opportunity to bring all the relevant facts on record during the trial of the case, the accused will also get an opportunity to examine and cross-examine the witnesses, after recording the evidence, the court can give a fair decision.
According to the detailed order, the first reference of the Toshakhana has been decided against the accused, the new case of the Toshakhana is still in the initial stages, the charge frame in the new case of the Toshakhana is yet to be framed.
The court has said in a detailed order that the two cases of Toshakhana are similar but the allegations are different. With these observations, the petition filed for the acquittal of the accused is dismissed.
