Islamabad, Jan 31 (EFE).- A special court in Pakistan on Wednesday sentenced former prime minister and main opposition leader, Imran Khan, and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to 14 years in prison for not declaring the money obtained from the sale of gifts he received during his mandate.
«An accountability court sentenced both Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to 14 years in prison each in a case related to Toshakhana,» a spokesperson for Khan’s party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Ahmed Janjua, told EFE.
Both Khan and Bibi «have been disqualified from public office for 10 years» over this case, the spokesperson added.
The opposition leader’s party condemned the court’s ruling, which it described as an «erroneous decision» and taken «in haste.»
«No interrogations are allowed, no final argument is concluded and the decision emerges as a predetermined process in play. This ridiculous decision will also be challenged,» the PTI said.
On Tuesday, Khan and one of his main collaborators, former foreign minister Mahmood Qureshi, were each handed a 10-year sentence by a special court for revealing private conversations, considered state secrets.
In early 2022, Khan said that he had in his possession a diplomatic cable that would prove a conspiracy to overthrow him from power for having taken a neutral stance in the war in Ukraine.
The former cricket star was removed through a no-confidence vote in April 2022.
He was sentenced to three years in prison on Aug. 5 for the Toshakhana case.
However, the Islamabad High Court suspended the sentence in late August, although he was disqualified from holding public office by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The former prime minister is currently detained and has more than 100 cases pending in different courts across the country.
Both sentences occur almost a week before general elections are scheduled to be held in the country, in which Khan cannot participate following the court’s disqualification order, despite having broad popular support.
The former prime minister has denounced that the Pakistani authorities aim to keep him out of the electoral race. EFE
aa-mvg/pd
