Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were convicted for allegedly getting married soon after their divorce (File)
Islamabad:
A Pakistani court overturned former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s conviction on illegal marriage charges on Saturday, although he remains in prison on charges of inciting riots.
Khan was the target of a trio of convictions in the days leading up to the February elections – cases that he said were orchestrated to prevent his return to power.
All of these cases have now been at least partially overturned on appeal, with a treason conviction carrying a decade-long prison sentence overturned in April, and a 14-year corruption sentence suspended in June, although the conviction still stands. .
Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi were also sentenced to seven years for allegedly getting married soon after their divorce, a violation of Islamic law.
But Islamabad Additional District and Sessions Court Judge Afzal Majoka announced in court that “the appeals of Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi have been accepted.”
A spokesman for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said the allegations were “rejected”.
Khan remains jailed, however, after a court canceled his bail this week over allegations that he incited riots by his supporters in May 2023.
Courting Controversy
Earlier this month, a UN panel of experts concluded that Khan’s detention had “no legal basis and appears to have been designed to disqualify him from running for political office.”
“Thus, from the beginning, this accusation was not founded in law and was allegedly used for political purposes,” he said, calling for his immediate release after almost a year in prison.
Candidates loyal to Khan won the most seats in national elections but were ousted from government by an alliance of rival military-backed parties.
Khan served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, when he was ousted in a vote of no confidence following disagreements with the military establishment, which wields enormous influence over civilian politics.
In opposition, he waged a campaign of defiance against the main generals, who directly governed Pakistan for decades of its history, even accusing them of an assassination attempt that injured him.
But the former cricket star’s comeback campaign has been hampered by several court cases, which analysts say were probably brought at the request of the military establishment.
Khan was briefly arrested for the first time in May 2023, sparking nationwide unrest by PTI supporters, some of whom targeted military installations.
The government and military cited the attacks as justification for a sweeping crackdown on the PTI, which saw its top leadership decimated by arrests and defections.
An anti-terrorism court in the eastern city of Lahore on Tuesday refused to grant him bail while police investigate his alleged role in the riots, despite him being behind bars at the time.
Surviving repression
PTI candidates were forced to run as independents in the February 8 elections, which were repeatedly postponed due to political chaos.
Khan’s arrest and conviction for corruption in August 2023 meant he himself was barred from running for office, confined to a cell in Adiala prison, south of the capital Islamabad.
Despite this, candidates loyal to the PTI secured more seats than any other party.
However, they were prevented from coming to power by a broad coalition of parties considered more flexible to the influence of the military.
Voting day itself was marred by allegations of vote tampering amid a nationwide mobile internet blackout. Islamabad said it orchestrated it for security reasons.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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