Former Pakistan Prime Minister, Imran Khan has been sentenced to 14 years imprisonment by a High Court over his involvement in bribery and corruption during his administration as the country’s leader.
The verdict in the case followed allegations of possible bribery involving land, which was exchanged for favours by real estate developer Malik Riaz Hussain.
As gathered the case is linked to the Al Qadir Trust that Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi established while he was in office. Meanwhile, khan’s wife, Bibi was also convicted in the land corruption case and was taken into custody shortly after the verdict.
The corruption case, which was described as the largest case of alleged financial wrongdoing against Khan, was delivered by an anti-corruption court in a prison in Rawalpindi, where the former prime minister has been jailed since August 2023.
Reacting to the court’s ruling, the Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party defended the former leader, insisting the land was not for personal gain, but was meant for a spiritual educational institution.
The PTI in a statement on Friday said, “Whilst we wait for a detailed decision, it’s important to note that, the Al Qadir Trust case against Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi lacks any solid foundation and is bound to collapse.”
A senior PTI leader, Omar Khan added: “This is a bogus case, and we will approach an appeals court against this decision.”
The 72-year-old, also a World Cup-winning cricketer, was removed from office in 2022 by a vote of no confidence. According to him, he has faced more than 150 criminal cases since then.
The land corruption case centers on the use of £190m that the UK repatriated to Pakistan in 2019 after Hussain forfeited cash and assets in a British criminal probe.
Khan was alleged to have then used the money to pay fines against the tycoon for the illegal acquisition of government lands at below-market value.
Former interior minister, Rana Sanaullah alleged in 2023 that Hussain gave land in Jhelum and Islamabad to the Al Qadir Trust in exchange for that favor.
After Khan’s sentence, Pakistan’s information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said it was the country’s largest corruption case
