Bushra Bibi, the wife of PTI founder Imran Khan was transferred from her sub-jail at her residence in Banigala to Adiala Jail on Wednesday after the Islamabad High Court’s orders.
Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, delivering the court’s reserved verdict, approved Bibi’s request and deemed the Islamabad administration’s notification regarding the sub-jail status of Imran Khan’s Banigala residence null and void.
The court’s decision comes after it had reserved its verdict on Bibi’s petition the previous week. Following the pronouncement of the verdict, the former first lady was promptly moved to Adiala Jail from the Banigala sub-jail.
Bibi had been incarcerated on January 31 after an accountability court in Islamabad sentenced both her and Imran Khan to 14 years in prison in the Toshakhana case. Although the IHC had suspended their sentences in the Toshakhana reference on April 1, Bibi had remained in custody in connection with the Iddat case.
Subsequent to the Toshakhana verdict, Bibi had been taken into custody by a NAB team at Adiala Jail. However, following a late-night notification declaring her Banigala residence a sub-jail, she had been relocated there.
The status of her residence as a sub-jail had sparked debate as both Bibi and her husband denied submitting any application for its designation as such. Nearly a week after her arrest, Bibi contested the residence’s status as a sub-jail, urging the IHC to allow her to serve her 14-year sentence in Adiala Jail.
