Toshakhana 2 case: Witnesses admit manipulation of jewellery valuation

Islamabad (Web Desk): Fresh details have surfaced in the Toshakhana 2 proceedings against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former premier Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi, as confessional statements of two central witnesses shed light on the undervaluation of a Bulgari jewellery set presented to them by the Saudi royal family.

The statements, recorded before the court, came from Khan’s former personal secretary, Inamullah Shah, and private appraiser Sohaib Abbasi. Shah admitted that from 2019 to 2021, he was drawing salaries both from his government position and from PTI simultaneously. 
He further disclosed that he exerted pressure on Abbasi to deliberately lower the value of the jewellery set.

According to Shah, “I asked Abbasi to decrease the valuation of the set,” adding that he was later dismissed on Bushra Bibi’s insistence, who suspected that his brother was aligned with Jahangir Tareen. Shah clarified that at the time he was stationed at Bani Gala, serving as comptroller of the Prime Minister’s House.

Appraiser Abbasi supported Shah’s testimony, admitting that he had indeed undervalued the jewellery out of fear, after being instructed by Khan’s then-principal secretary to declare it worth only Rs5 million.

Abbasi informed the court that Shah threatened him with blacklisting from government work if he refused. He further stated that his confession had also been shared with the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and a magistrate.

NAB asserted that the actual price of the Bulgari set — comprising a necklace, bracelet, earrings, and ring — was around Rs75 million, whereas the former premier declared it at only Rs5.9 million.

The reference emphasized that Bushra Bibi was handed the jewellery in May 2021 during her trip to Saudi Arabia, when Khan was in office between 2018 and 2022, and that the set was never deposited in the Toshakhana as required.

According to the reference, the deputy military secretary had relayed instructions for an official assessment, but the Toshakhana officer’s involvement was bypassed.

Documents indicated that the jewellery company had sold the necklace for €300,000 and the earrings for €80,000 in 2018, although the bracelet and ring’s prices could not be verified. 
On May 28, 2021, the set was estimated at Rs70.56 million, including Rs50.64 million for the necklace and Rs10.50 million for the earrings.

As per Toshakhana regulations, half of the value of the gift — approximately Rs35.28 million — was payable to the national treasury. The undervaluation, NAB concluded, caused a financial loss of the same amount to the state.