Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Khan were each sentenced to 14 years in prison in a case related to the illegal sale of state gifts, the party said on Wednesday.
The decision also includes a 10-year disqualification from holding public office, said its party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
Bushra Khan, commonly known as Bushra Bibi, was arrested soon after the verdict, PTI said.
The sentence by an anti-corruption court in Islamabad came a day after Khan was sentenced to 10 years in prison in another case in which he was found guilty of revealing state secrets, and a week before national elections.
“Another sad day in the history of our judicial system, which is being dismantled,” Khan’s media team said, denying the charge.
“No cross-examination is allowed, no final arguments are concluded and the results appear like a predetermined process in the game,” he said, adding “This absurd decision will also be challenged.”
Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife have been sentenced to 14 years in prison on January 31, 2024, local media said, after being found guilty of corruption in a case involving gifts he received while prime minister. AFP via Getty Images Khan (R) and Bushra Bibi, his wife, speak to the media before signing documents to submit bail bonds for his bail in different cases, at the Lahore High Court office in Lahore, Pakistan, on July 17, 2023 AP
Khan was also sentenced to three years in prison in August by another court for selling gifts worth more than 140 million rupees ($501,000) in state property and received during his 2018-2022 prime ministership.
Wednesday’s decision was linked to the same matter, but followed an investigation by the country’s highest anti-corruption body, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which also charged his wife in the case.
A member of the prosecution team, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, confirmed the verdict. Local broadcaster Geo News reported that the decision also resulted in hefty fines.
Policemen stand guard at the entrance of Adiala prison after the trial of jailed former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in Rawalpindi on January 31, 2024. AFP via Getty Images
Khan’s initial three-year sentence was later suspended but Khan remains in prison in connection with another case. He has said that he legally bought the state gift.
Government officials alleged that Khan’s aides sold the gifts in Dubai.
Khan’s earlier conviction resulted in a five-year ban from holding public office, ruling the 71-year-old out of the upcoming Feb. 8 election.
Wednesday’s decision, however, means he is not eligible to hold office until he is 81.
Although Khan has been found guilty in two separate cases, this is the first conviction against his wife Bushra. The two married in 2018, a few months before Khan ascended to the post of prime minister for the first time.
It was Khan’s third marriage after two divorces.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
