Imran Khan’s NAB Cases Now Fall Under Federal Constitutional Court

Pakistan’s constitutional restructuring reached a significant milestone Monday when amendments to the National Accountability Bureau law transferred final appellate authority from the Supreme Court to the newly established Federal Constitutional Court—a change with substantial implications for PTI founder Imran Khan’s pending accountability prosecutions.

The National Accountability Bureau (Amendment) Act, 2026 inserted Section 32A, establishing the Federal Constitutional Court as the final forum for second appeals against High Court judgments in NAB cases. The section explicitly reads: “Any person convicted or the Prosecutor General Accountability, if so directed by the NAB chairman, aggrieved by the decision made by the High Court under section 32, may prefer a second appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court within a period of thirty days.”

Direct Impact on Imran Khan

The amendment carries particular significance for Imran Khan’s legal trajectory. The £190 million Al-Qadir Trust case—regarded as the most serious corruption prosecution against the former prime minister—now falls under Federal Constitutional Court jurisdiction for final appeals. Under the previous framework, Khan could challenge a High Court conviction before the Supreme Court; the amendment eliminates this appellate layer.

PTI sources characterize the change as fundamentally altering Khan’s legal options. If the High Court upholds any NAB conviction against him, including the Al-Qadir Trust case, the Federal Constitutional Court becomes his final appellate forum rather than the Supreme Court.

The amendment applies comprehensively across all NAB prosecutions, but observers note that Imran Khan’s multiple pending accountability cases make the jurisdictional shift particularly consequential for the former prime minister.

Constitutional Framework and Judicial Restructuring

This amendment represents one of the first major jurisdictional transfers from the Supreme Court to the Federal Constitutional Court following Pakistan’s broader judicial restructuring. The change reflects deliberate policy choices to concentrate certain appellate authority within the new constitutional court rather than maintaining Supreme Court appellate jurisdiction.

The amendment does not alter substantive corruption offense definitions or available challenge grounds—it simply designates the Federal Constitutional Court as the final decision-maker. This procedural restructuring, however, has profound implications for high-profile defendants like Imran Khan whose cases intersect constitutional and accountability law.

Political and Legal Implications

The Al-Qadir Trust case’s eventual outcome in the Federal Constitutional Court could determine not only Khan’s criminal liability but potentially his political future, given Pakistan’s interconnection between legal status and political eligibility. The case involves allegations that Khan misused government resources to establish a trust benefiting associates.

The timing of the NAB amendment—coinciding with the Federal Constitutional Court’s operational establishment—suggests coordinated judicial restructuring rather than isolated legislative change.

Imran Khan’s legal team must now navigate Federal Constitutional Court procedures and jurisprudence rather than relying on Supreme Court precedent. This jurisdictional shift introduces uncertainty regarding appellate outcomes and legal strategy viability.