RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Secretary General Salman Akram Raja on Monday said there was no link between the talks and the £190 million case, adding that the party would not make any deal. The Imran-based party has ruled out a “deal” following the ongoing negotiation process with the government after the court yet again postponed the much-awaited verdict in the former prime minister’s bribery case. Responding to concerns raised by the repeated postponements, Raja said while talking to the media outside the Adiala jail that the negotiation process is underway and reports on the third round of talks are likely to take place on January 15. However, he clarified that “if anyone wants to give the impression that the judgment has been delayed because of these talks, that is completely false.” “We will not make any deals. Khan sahib [PTI founder Imran Khan] is clear: he will fight his battles according to the law and the constitution; he will prove his innocence in the courts,” Raja said. The PTI top leader further said that the ousted prime minister had faced cases earlier — cases of iddat and encryption — and emerged victorious. “We will fight the cases and not make any deals. We are negotiating [with the government] about democracy, human rights and the constitution,” he added. Raja further stated that there were no other reasons and PTI was not seeking relief for anyone. PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who accompanied Raju to the media, also dismissed questions as to whether the stay of judgment was part of any deal. Chief Justice Nasir Javed adjourned the announcement of the graft case, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case, this morning, expressing dismay at the failure of the accused to appear. It will now be announced on January 17th. A team of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutors, the media and court staff were present in the courtroom, but no one from the defense was present. While the verdict was due at 11am and the judge adjourned the notice beforehand, Geo News reporter Shabbir Dar said the parties involved usually reach an agreement ahead of time. Khan has previously claimed that the verdict – initially postponed to December 23, 2024 and again to January 6, 2025 – was postponed to “pressurize” him. However, he did not appear in court today. “I sat in the courtroom for two hours but none of them showed up today,” the judge told reporters in the courtroom, adding: “Let’s give them another chance.” The pair were indicted along with others by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in its December 2023 reference for allegedly manipulating Rs 50 billion – then £190 million – sent by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government as part of a deal with a real estate tycoon.
