Imran Khan jailed for 14 years

Former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been convicted in a £190 million ($232 million) land corruption case involving the Al-Qadir Trust, local media reported on Friday.

According to ARY News and Dawn, an anti-corruption court in the northern city of Rawalpindi sentenced Khan to 14 years in prison and Bibi to seven years, with the verdict being announced at Adiala Jail.

Khan and Bibi have also been fined $3,600 and $1,800, respectively, with the failure to comply carrying an additional imprisonment term.

The Al-Qadir Trust case centers on allegations that Khan and Bibi were involved in a quid pro quo scheme that saw the politician and his wife receive land worth millions of dollars from a property mogul during the establishment of an eponymous university in exchange for legal protection.

The former Pakistani prime minister has denied the charges, calling them “politically motivated.” Before the verdict, Khan said the case lacked evidence and would embarrass the authorities. “My sentencing is being sought in a case where neither have I derived a single penny of personal gain, nor has the government suffered a single penny of financial loss,” he said.

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party condemned the ruling, calling it a “black verdict,” while sharing a video purportedly showing protests against the decision outside the National Assembly.

A cricketer-turned-politician, Khan served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, when he was ousted from office in a no-confidence vote, with the opposition accusing him of mismanaging the economy and foreign policy. Khan, however, claims that he was overthrown as a result of a US conspiracy.

He has been embroiled in numerous legal battles, with looming charges of corruption. In 2023, he was found guilty of illegally buying and selling state gifts he had received during his premiership, although the sentence was suspended. One year later, he was also sentenced to ten years for leaking state secrets, a charge he has denied. His earlier arrests and sentences sparked nationwide protests, some of which turned violent.