Accountability Judge Mohammad Bashir issued instructions during the hearing at Adiala Jail.
This development occurred a day after a NAB team interrogated Imran at the jail for several hours in the Al Qadir Trust case.
The case alleges that the former premier and his wife, Bushra Bibi, received billions of rupees and land from Bahria Town Ltd to legalize Rs50 billion, identified and returned by the UK during the previous PTI government.
Imran was initially arrested earlier this year from the Islamabad High Court premises but was later released after the Supreme Court declared the arrest unlawful.
On Nov 14, the PTI chief, already imprisoned in Adiala Jail in the cipher case, was arrested again by NAB in the Al-Qadir Trust case and placed on physical remand.
During today's hearing, Imran’s wife and legal team appeared before the court, alongside a five-member NAB team. Despite NAB's request for an extension of the physical remand, the court rejected the plea, opting to place the PTI chief on judicial remand.
Speaking to the media later, Imran’s counsel, Sardar Latif Khosa, argued that physical remand was unnecessary in this case. He accused NAB of engaging in “political engineering and political vendetta,” claiming that the government manipulated it for its own gains.
Quoting Imran, Khosa stated, “The chairman says they [investigators] question him for 10 minutes and then indulge in chit-chatting for three to four hours.”
Khosa emphasized Imran’s stance that the country would not progress if a “minus one or two” strategy was used to suppress opponents.
Imran is also accused of misleading the cabinet by concealing facts related to the settlement agreement. Money received under the settlement agreement was supposed to be deposited in the national exchequer but was adjusted in the recovery of Rs450bn liabilities of Bahria Town Karachi (BTK).
The NAB’s notice revealed that funds frozen by the NCA were dishonestly adjusted against BTK liabilities. The Supreme Court, on Nov 23, ordered the transfer of Rs35 billion remitted in the Bahria Town settlement to the federal government.
