PTI chief presents defence in gifts case

Rejects ECP’s claims; announces presenting his witnesses

ISLAMABAD:

Former prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday finally gave his testimony in the Toshakhana –gift repository—case as he announced presenting defence evidence—to the surprise of many.

The PTI chief, who is facing criminal proceedings for allegedly not mentioning the gifts he received from foreign dignitaries during his term as the prime minister in his statements of assets and liabilities, appeared in the court of Judge Humayun Dilawar to make his statement under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

Imran Khan came to the rostrum when the judge called his name and later read out written replies to each of the 35 questions that the court had provided the PTI chief earlier to facilitate the process of giving testimony.

Imran stated that he had not heard the prosecution evidence as the evidence was recorded in his absence. He said the court also did not frame charges against him in his or his counsel’s presence.

Imran said the reference sent to the National Assembly speaker with regard to alleged misuse of the Toshakhana gifts by him was politically motivated and based on maliciously false allegations.

Imran Khan said the allegation made in the reference pertained to the year 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 but the ECP went beyond the scope of reference with mala fide intention in league with the government.

To a question with regard to his not mentioning the gifts retained during the year 2019-2020 in the statement of assets and liabilities, he said there was no requirement under the law to mention the said gifts in the statement and no such column exists in Form-B that is submitted to the ECP every year.

He said no witness from the Cabinet Division had been produced by the prosecution to depose that the division had sent any list of gifts presented to him along with assessed value and retention cost.

He said the list consisted of documents spreading over 116 pages, but the prosecution had led no evidence to prove any of said documents by any of witnesses who may have scribed, executed or prepared those documents or under whose supervision these documents may have been prepared.

Imran said the prosecution had also not produced any custodian of the said documents. The contents of none of these documents could, therefore, be used as evidence in this case.

Responding to the ECP’s claim that he deliberately concealed material facts and submitted false statements and incorrect declarations of his assets and liabilities for the years 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 202O-2021, Imran replied in the negative.

Imran Khan claimed that the prosecution had miserably failed to bring any incriminating evidence against him which might require me to appear as his own witness. He, however, announced produce defence evidence whose list will be provided to the court today [Wednesday].

Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has admitted a petition filed by Imran Khan against a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) led inquiry into the alleged manipulation of a diplomatic cipher during Imran’s term as the prime minister.

Earlier, the IHC registrar had returned the petition after raising objections to it. On Tuesday, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq took up the PTI chairman’s petition along with the objections raised to it by the registrar office and later ordered his office to list it for hearing.