Pakistan turmoil: Protests against judiciary continue as government decides to file references against judges

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called on former PM Imran Khan to join the investigation into the Al Qadir Trust case. According to Dawn, the Pakistani PM said, “Leave the fabrications of here and there. Join the investigation and account for your corruption. End of the matter.”

His statement came hours after Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi was granted protective bail by the Lahore Court on Monday. Imran and his wife Bibi are implicated in a graft case. The couple is alleged to have availed financial assistance from a land developer involved in the building of Al Qadir University. Both Khan and Bibi are trustees at the university.

Khan was granted bail in Al Qadir Trust case

Earlier, Imran Khan was granted a two-week bail by the Islamabad High Court on Friday after Pakistan’s Supreme Court termed his arrest “invalid and unlawful.” The Pakistani government, on the other hand, has accused the court of favouring Imran Khan. The country’s National Assembly has also formed a five-member committee to file references against the Supreme Court judges.

Ruling coalition stages protests before Supreme Court

Parties and groups backed by Pakistan's ruling coalition staged protests in front of the Supreme Court on Monday to press the court to take a hard stance against Khan and his supporters.Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Maryam Nawaz Sharif and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman were among those who joined the coalition's sit-in.

Watch:Ex-PM Imran Khan reminds nation of erstwhile east Pakistan

Earlier, the protestors broke into Islamabad's highly sensitive red zone area, where the Pakistani prime minister and president live. Police said the protests were peaceful but warned that there was a "risk of terrorism".

Al Qadir Trust case- Explained in detail

Imran Khan, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, along with his wife Bushra Bibi, and their close associates Zulfiqar Bukhari and Babar Awan, are facing serious allegations of embezzling billions of Pakistani rupees. It is claimed that they received substantial amounts of money from a real estate firm called Bahria Town in exchange for legalising a laundered sum of 50 billion PKR. This money was previously identified and returned to Pakistan by the United Kingdom during the tenure of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

Authorities in Pakistan have stated that Imran Khan was arrested by officials from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) specifically in relation to the Al-Qadir Trust case. They further mentioned that there are numerous other corruption cases under investigation involving the former prime minister.

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