Jailed Pakistani former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been convicted for a “fraudulent marriage” by a district court in Pakistan. This development comes as Khan faces a series of legal troubles and adds to the complexity of the country’s upcoming General Election.
The district court in Adiala Jail, where Imran Khan has been imprisoned since August on various charges, ruled that the couple’s 2018 marriage violated the law. The court found both Khan and Bibi guilty of “a marriage ceremony fraudulently gone through without lawful marriage”. The case was filed by Bibi’s former husband, Khawar Farid Maneka, who accused them of marrying without completing the Iddat, a compulsory waiting period in Islam after divorce, and committing adultery.
Imran Khan’s political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has condemned the judgment, calling it “a mockery of the law”. The party spokesperson, Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari, who was a witness to the marriage ceremony, labeled the conviction as “a victory for Imran Khan” and criticized the absurdity of the case and the sentences imposed on him. These recent legal woes add to the challenges faced by Khan, who was already sentenced to 10 years in prison for leaking state secrets and 14 years for corruption relating to the unlawful sale of state gifts during his tenure as prime minister.
The timing of these convictions is significant as Pakistan’s General Election is just around the corner. However, Imran Khan is barred from contesting and cannot hold office for a decade, according to PTI. This restriction will undoubtedly have an impact on the political landscape, as Khan, a former star cricketer turned politician, was ousted in a parliamentary no-confidence vote in 2022 after being embroiled in political controversy. Many analysts view the upcoming election as one of the least credible in Pakistan’s history due to the military’s crackdown on Khan and his aides.