A federal anti-corruption court in Karachi on March 7, 2025, the Senate Chairman and former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in three cases related to the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) scandal. The court said that there was insufficient evidence to support the charges, which was a legal win for the senior Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader.

Yousaf Raza Gilani Clearance: Background of the TDAP

The TDAP scandal was of fraudulent expenditure of trade subsidies during the PPP government’s reign. They said that billions of rupees were diverted into the accounts of non-existent companies via faked checks and bonus claims. Since 2014, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had put Gilani on trial in nearly twenty-five out of more than seventy cases of the scandal.

In the case that was just heard, Senator Farooq H. Naek representing Gilani stated that the allegations of corruption were unfounded and not based on noticeable evidence. The court also commented that the principal witnesses who had attested against Gilani had themselves been charged with illegal activities and had been denied bail, thus, the evidence on which the prosecution stood got weaker and weaker. Thus, the court freed Gilani together with 40 other accused parties.

When Gilani was talking to the media after leaving the court, he mentioned that a major witness who had given evidence against him was now an escapee. Furthermore, he referred to recent judicial reforms that aim to correct false evidence, thus, he underscored the necessity of avoiding politically motivated cases.

Key Points Of Yousaf Raza Gilani 3 Cases Corruption Clearance :

• Corruption Scandal: The case implicated that trade subsidies were issued to fake companies during the PPP government’s time, which were supposedly fraudulent by making multiple accounts of the same case.
• Multiple Cases: Gilani was accused of being the mastermind in around 25 cases out of over 70 cases that were associated with the scam.
• Defense’s View: Gilani’s lawyer argued that the charges were not only political bias but also lacked substantial evidence to be considered a valid prosecution.

His release came after the same decision in March 2022 when Gilani and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) chairman had charges that had to do with the appointment of them which were cleared. The court declared that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was unable to substantiate any allegations of financial corruption or misuse of power against the accused.

Despite the recent court judgment being a big blow to Gilani, the TDAP scandal has yet to be fully resolved; several more cases are still pending. For him, the result will depend on these judgments, and other cases’ results could also be of a wider range of accountability and transparency within Pakistan’s political field.