A district and sessions court in Islamabad has declared Shahzad Akbar, former adviser to Prime Minister Imran Khan on interior and accountability, a proclaimed offender. The court also issued an arrest warrant for Akbar in a written order, citing his persistent failure to appear despite multiple summons.
The ruling pertains to a case registered by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) in July 2025 regarding Akbar’s alleged controversial social media statements. The court has also received the formal challan (charge sheet) in the case.
This legal decree follows closely on the heels of a significant diplomatic move. Just a day earlier, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi formally commenced Pakistan’s extradition process for Akbar during a meeting with UK High Commissioner Jane Marriott in Islamabad. Naqvi presented the relevant documents, stating that while he “fully believed” in freedom of expression, no country could allow “slander and defamation of the state and institutions from abroad.”
Read: Pakistan Initiates UK Extradition of Shahzad Akbar, Major (retd) Adil Raja
Akbar, a barrister and former head of the government’s Asset Recovery Unit (ARU), has been residing in the United Kingdom since April 2022, shortly after the Imran Khan-led government was ousted. Although his name was placed on the Exit Control List (ECL), the Islamabad High Court ordered its removal, ruling the travel ban unlawful, allowing his departure.
Last month, the Pakistan High Commission in London refused to renew Akbar’s passport, with officials confirming it had been blocked by authorities in Islamabad.
Once a central figure in the former government’s anti-corruption drive, Akbar previously served as a Special Prosecutor with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from 2004 to 2008. In that role, he worked on high-profile cases involving former premiers Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari, as well as the current Prime Minister, Shahbaz Sharif.
