LAHORE: An accountability court on Wednesday suspended the permanent arrest warrants issued for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s daughter, Rabia Imran, and her husband, Imran Ali Yusuf, in a long-running reference concerning alleged corruption in the Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC).
Presiding Judge of the accountability court heard the applications filed by the couple’s legal counsel, who argued that the accused intended to join the legal proceedings and face the charges.
After hearing the arguments, the court suspended the warrants and directed both Rabia Imran and Imran Ali Yusuf to appear before the court in person on May 5.
Background of the Reference
The Saaf Pani reference is a corruption case filed by Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lahore in December 2018 against 20 individuals linked to alleged irregularities in Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC), a PML-N government initiative under Shehbaz Sharif for clean water supply projects.
NAB accused officials of causing Rs24.7 million loss through illegal rental of an under-construction building (Ali Trade Centre) to PSPC, overpriced water filtration plant purchases, and improper contract awards like to KSB Pumps.
Timeline of Indictment and Implication
Rabia Imran (Shehbaz Sharif’s daughter) and Imran Ali Yusuf (her husband, CEO of Ali and Fatima Developers) were first implicated in a NAB supplementary reference filed in November 2020, alleging abuse of authority in the rental deal.
Non-bailable arrest warrants were issued on September 28, 2020, by Lahore Accountability Court. They were declared proclaimed offenders/absconders multiple times, including March 2021 and as recently as April 30, 2025, after repeated non-appearances; assets were attached in September 2021.
Case Developments
Earlier, an accountability court acquitted 16 co-accused (including PML-N leader Raja Qamarul Islam) in January 2022, citing insufficient evidence, but Rabia and Imran remained absconders. No confirmed resolution or warrant suspension for them as of latest reports up to April 2025.
