A Pakistani court on Friday sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan to 14 years in prison in a landmark corruption case. His wife, Bushra Bibi, was also convicted and handed a seven-year sentence.
The verdict, delivered by an anti-graft court convened at the jail near Islamabad where Khan has been held since August 2023, centered on allegations involving the Al-Qadir Trust, a welfare foundation established by the couple.
“The prosecution has proven its case. Khan is convicted,” Judge Nasir Rana declared.
Khan, who faces charges in approximately 200 cases, dismissed the allegations as politically motivated. Speaking after the conviction, he stated, “I will neither make any deal nor seek any relief.”
Mounting Pressure on Khan
Analysts suggest the sentence is part of a broader effort to pressure Khan into stepping away from politics. Since his ousting in 2022, Khan has launched a campaign openly criticizing Pakistan’s powerful military establishment, an unprecedented move in the country’s political landscape.
Despite earlier convictions, some of which were overturned or suspended, Khan remains imprisoned as numerous other cases against him continue.
In 2023, a United Nations panel of experts found his detention lacked legal basis, suggesting it was intended to disqualify him from political office. He was barred from contesting February’s election, where his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won more seats than any other but was sidelined by a coalition seen as aligned with the military.
The PTI has decried the latest conviction, alleging it is a tool to silence Khan and undermine his political influence. Meanwhile, critics argue the case reflects the ongoing erosion of democratic norms in Pakistan.
Khan’s legal team is expected to appeal the conviction, but the ruling has deepened the country’s political uncertainty as elections loom.
