On Friday (17th January 2025), Pakistan’s Former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi were pronounced guilty in the Al-Qadir Trust case. Consequently, a Pakistan court sentenced the PTI founder to 14 years in jail while his wife has been awarded a sentencing of seven-years in prison. Khan and his wife have been in deep legal and political waters since his government was removed by a no confidence motion in 2022.
The subsequent upheaval in the parliament in 2022 was followed by mass violence in the cities that authorities say was incited by Khan and his supporters. This led to widespread looting, burning and attack on public and military property, following which Khan and many of his supporters were arrested and charged with a number of cases.
This latest conviction marks the fourth major case in which the former prime minister has been convicted. Three earlier convictions, announced in January last year, were related to selling state gifts, leaking state secrets, and unlawful marriage, all of which were overturned or suspended. Despite this, Khan remains behind bars, with dozens of cases pending against him – a situation he describes as a political witch-hunt.
The Judge taking the case, Nasir Javed Rana had previously delayed the verdict three times. On Friday, he announced the verdict in a makeshift courtroom at Adiala Jail. Apart from jail terms, the court also imposed fines on the duo, worth Rs 1 million and Rs 500,000, respectively. If the duo fails to pay the fine, the sentencing will be further extended by six months of jail term.
Justice Rana announced the verdict amid tight security outside Adiala Jail. After the pronouncement of the verdict, the security forces arrested Bushra from the courtroom premises.
Imran Khan and his wife were indicted in the case last year on 27th Feb, shortly after the general elections. According to the allegations, Imran and Bushra Bibi obtained billions of rupees and land worth hundreds of kanals from Bahria Town Ltd. It was allegedly done for legalising Rs 50 billion that was identified and returned to the country by the United Kingdom during the previous PTI government.
In August 2023, Imran was jailed in a series of legal cases, which he dubbed as “politically motivated”. Last year, he was acquitted in the cipher and Iddat cases. But in December, he was charged in the Toshakhana 2.0 case.
Imran Khan’s Case Details
In December 2023, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) framed corruption charges against Imran and seven others, including his wife Bushra Bibi, in relations with the Al-Qadir University Trust.
The NAB alleged that the jailed PTI leader Imran Khan played a “pivotal role in the illicit transfer of funds meant for the state of Pakistan into an account designated for the payment of land by Bahria Town, Karachi”. According to Dawn news report, the NAB reference added that despite getting multiple opportunities to justify and provide information, the accused deliberately refused to give information on one pretext or another.
Apart from Imran Khan, Property tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain and his son Ahmed Ali Riaz, Mirza Shehzad Akbar, and Zulfi Bukhari are the other suspects.
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Khan and his PTI party were ousted from power in April 2022 via a parliamentary vote of no confidence, a move Khan attributes to a conspiracy involving the country’s military and the United States, allegations both have denied.
Pakistan’s military has held significant political influence, ruling the nation directly for nearly three decades since its formation in 1947, and was once seen as Khan’s benefactor and architect of his rise to power, before the two fell out. While no prime minister in Pakistan’s history has completed their tenure, three of four military dictators ruled for nearly a decade each.
Khan one of the most popular leaders in the country currently languishes in jail. Khan leads a very complex dual faced politics where on one hand he angles himself closely with many extremists and radicals, on the other hand he is also seen as an anti US figurehead standing against the rule of the Pakistani authoritarian military regime. With the authorities showing no signs of letting up the future and fate of Imran Khan continues to lie in the balance.
