A provincial court in Pakistan sentenced Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, and his spouse to seven years in prison each for their “un-Islamic” marriage.
Khan and Bushra Bibi were sentenced to 14 years in prison last week in the Toshakhana corruption case for selling gifts from the government without permission.
On Saturday, the public had access to the decision in the “un-Islamic marriage case,” which Bushra Bibi’s ex-husband had brought up.
It was Khan’s third sentence after a week. According to information presented during a hearing at the Rawalpindi jail, he has been in custody since August and faces over a hundred charges.
Khan told reporters that the “iddat” lawsuit was meant to “humiliate and disgrace” him and his partner for being found guilty of not waiting 40 days following Bibi’s divorce before getting married.
“This is the first time in history that an iddat case has been filed,” Khan said.
Spectators note that the three convictions happened just days before the general election on February 8, which makes their timing noteworthy. Many people still hold great regard for Khan, despite the fact that he is not permitted to run in the election.
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Scholars, professionals, and activists from civil society criticized the choice. According to prominent journalist and pundit Hamid Mir, “The verdict is disgraceful for the judiciary.”
Legal expert Reema Umer states in her article on X that the verdicts and procedures in the “iddat case”—that is, “going through a marriage ceremony fraudulently without being lawfully married”—are a disgrace to our justice system.
“Shockingly, the state appears to have descended to this level merely to embarrass IK and Bushra Bibi.”
Khan was removed from office in 2022 due to a constitutional vote of no confidence; nonetheless, Khan maintains that he has done nothing wrong and that the accusations against him are politically motivated.
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Once the military leader was dismissed and Khan leveled personal grievances at him, he launched an offensive against the powerful army that had made him famous. The nation’s military has long been suspected of having political connections.
The party leaders of Khan have either split up or are imprisoned, and there has been a severe crackdown on party workers. In a statement, Khan’s party claimed that the government had arrested its leaders and officials and was preventing them from running in the next election.
Khan’s close adviser and media counselor, Syed Zulfikar Bukhari, claimed to have witnessed the marriage and refuted the latest conviction.
Must the nation’s courts and other systems handle this independently? Imran Khan has won, sort of. According to Bukhari, marriage and divorce are the main topics of discussion in Pakistani political discourse these days.
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