Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Khan, have been acquitted of charges

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Khan, also known as Bushra Bibi, have been acquitted of charges related to unlawful marriage, according to statements from his party and lawyer. Initially, they were sentenced to seven years in prison days before Pakistan's February election, with the court ruling at the time that their 2018 marriage violated Islamic law. Despite a court in June rejecting their plea to suspend the February ruling, an Islamabad court on Saturday accepted their appeals.

Zulfi Bukhari, a senior official in Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, confirmed to Trending News that the charges were dismissed, while Khan’s lawyer, Naeem Panjutha, announced on X that the couple was acquitted. Despite this acquittal, Khan remains imprisoned, as his bail was canceled earlier in the week over allegations that he incited riots by his supporters in May 2023.

 

Khan’s lawyer, Intazar Hussain Panjutha, informed Trending News that despite the acquittal, Khan would not be released. An anti-terrorism court in Lahore approved Khan’s arrest in connection with last year’s riots, and the court denied him bail as the investigation continues, even though he was already in custody at the time.

 

Bukhari asserted that there is currently no case that justifies keeping Khan in jail. The marriage case was initiated by Bibi’s former husband, Khawar Maneka, who claimed that she did not observe the required three-month waiting period under Islamic law after their divorce before marrying Khan. Maneka alleged that he divorced Bibi in November 2017, and Khan announced their marriage in February 2018.

 

Regarding Bibi, Bukhari stated that with the acquittal in the unlawful marriage case, she should be released immediately. Earlier this month, a United Nations panel declared Khan’s detention arbitrary and without legal basis, suggesting it was intended to disqualify him from political office. The UN panel called for his immediate release after nearly a year in jail.

 

In the general election, candidates loyal to Khan won the most seats but were prevented from forming a government by an alliance of military-backed rival parties. PTI secured a major legal victory when the Supreme Court ruled it eligible for reserved seats in national and provincial assemblies, marking a significant defeat for the coalition government.

 

Khan, who served as prime minister from 2018 until his removal in 2022 via a no-confidence vote after falling out with the military, has led a campaign against top generals, even accusing them of an assassination attempt. However, his comeback efforts have been hindered by numerous legal cases, which analysts suggest are driven by the military establishment.

 

Khan’s initial brief arrest in May 2023 led to nationwide unrest from PTI supporters, with some targeting military facilities. The government and military used these attacks to justify a crackdown on the PTI, resulting in the arrest and defection of its senior leadership.