Former Pak prime minister Imran Khan, his wife sentenced to 14 and 7 years in prison in corruption case

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court on Friday sentenced jailed former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to 14 and seven years in prison respectively after finding them guilty of corruption in the 190 million pounds al-Qadir Trust case.

Judge Nasir Javed Rana of the anti-corruption court announced the verdict in a makeshift court set up in Adila jail where Khan is currently lodged. Khan is facing dozens of cases after he lost a trust vote in Parliament in 2022.

Khan has been convicted for "corrupt practices" and "misuse of authority", while his wife has been convicted for "involvement in illegal activities".

Khan, who has been jailed since August 2023, was also fined Rs 1 million and Bibi half a million rupees. Failure to pay the fine will entail an additional six months of imprisonment for Khan and three months for Bibi. The court also ordered the confiscation of the land of Al-Qadir University set up by them.

Bibi was arrested from the court after the sentencing.

Supporters and leaders of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party staged a protest outside Parliament House, held placards, and chanted slogans, demanding his release.

“Today's verdict has tarnished the reputation of the judiciary In this case, neither I benefited nor the government lost. I don't want any relief and will face all cases," Khan was quoted as saying by his party.

“A dictator is doing all this," he said.

PTI leaders strongly denounced the verdict, terming it “unjust”, “shameful,” and a case of “political victimisation.”

PTI chairman Gohar Khan said, “The behaviour of the court has been unjust. Khan sahib has not benefitted from a single rupee from this matter.”

PTI lawyer Faisal Chaudhry termed the decision “political use of the National Accountability Bureau”.

Another party leader, Shibli Faraz, argued that Khan and Bibi were not beneficiaries of the alleged transactions. He contended that they were being punished for founding the Al-Qadir University, which aimed to promote the teachings of the Prophet.

"Those who looted the country walk free, while sincere leaders face jail," said Faraz, while reaffirming to challenge the verdict.

Khan can appeal against the judgment in the High Court and if needed in the Supreme Court.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in December 2023 filed the case against Khan (72), Bibi (50) and six others, accusing them of causing a loss to the tune of 190 million pounds (PRs 50 billion) to the national kitty.

Only Khan and Bibi have been prosecuted in the case as all others, including a property tycoon, were out of the country.

The case revolves around allegations that an amount of PRs 50 billion, returned to Pakistan by the UK's National Crime Agency as part of a settlement with the property tycoon, was misused.

The funds were reportedly intended for the national treasury but were allegedly redirected for the personal benefit of the businessman who helped Bibi and Khan to set up a university.

Bibi, as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust, is accused of benefiting from this settlement, including acquiring 458 kanals of land for Al-Qadir University in Jhelum.

Judge Rana concluded the hearing in the case on December 18 but reserved the judgment until December 23. Later, he fixed January 6 as the date for announcing the verdict, Geo News reported.

He was on leave on January 6 so the verdict was postponed until January 13.

But the verdict was once again deferred as the accused and their lawyers were not present in the court on January 13.

The judgment comes amidst the ongoing negotiation between the government and Khan's PTI to address the political instability in the country due to the imprisonment of Khan and several other leaders of his party.

Pakistan has been in the grip of political turmoil since the elections were held on February 8 last year when the PTI refused to accept the result and held several protests over alleged rigging of polls, and Khan's detention.

So far three rounds of talks have been held between the government and the PTI and the opposition party has presented its charter of demands in writing to the government.

Khan claims all cases against him were “politically motivated”. Last year, he was acquitted in the cipher case for disclosing official secrets and the Iddat case for violating marriage laws but was charged in the Toshakhana 2 corruption case in December.