Imran Khan Sentenced to 14 Years in Jail in New Ruling
The “Dawn” newspaper reported today, Wednesday, that the anti-corruption court has issued a 14-year prison sentence for former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, in a case related to the sale of gifts received from the state.
According to the newspaper, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) presented new evidence last month against Khan and his wife in court, accusing them of retaining a collection of jewelry received from the Saudi Crown Prince.
As per today’s ruling, Imran and Bushra have been disqualified from holding any public office for a period of 10 years, and each has been fined 787 million rupees.
This is the third ruling against Imran Khan, coming just one day after former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi was sentenced to 10 years in prison in a case of leaking state secrets, and a week before the general elections.
Yesterday’s case alleges that Khan shared the contents of a confidential telegram sent by the country’s ambassador to Washington to the government in Islamabad in front of a crowd on March 27, 2022. Khan had indicated that it was evidence that his dismissal from office was the result of a US-backed conspiracy by the Pakistani military.
In response, the Justice Movement, the party headed by Khan, stated that they will appeal the court’s ruling. Khan’s lawyer also affirmed that the verdict against his client is illegal and that they will appeal it.
In a related context, another court sentenced the former cricket star to 3 years in prison last August for the sale of gifts exceeding 140 million rupees (about 500,000 USD) that he had received during his tenure as prime minister between 2018 and 2022.
However, a Pakistani court overturned the verdict, yet Khan remained detained pending another case involving the suspected disclosure of official documents and the sale of state gifts. Government officials alleged that Khan’s assistants sold the gifts in Dubai.
Imran Khan had sought to run for elections after his release in recent months; however, the judiciary rejected his candidacy and that of most of his supporters for the legislative elections scheduled for February.
