Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: As Pakistan gradually sinks like a melting glacier, its military-controlled kangaroo court sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi and his wife Bushra Bibi to 17 years each in jail in yet another “corruption” case.
Meanwhile, Baluch terrorists were also busy, attacking trains, and halting railway traffic for hours on Saturday.
Special court judge Shahrukh Arjumand announced the judgment against jailed Imran in the Toshakhana 2 case in the high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder is currently being held. The case is about alleged fraud in state gifts, which the former first couple—Imran and his third wife Bushra Bibi—received from the Saudi government in 2021, the media reported on Saturday.
Khan, 73, who has been in jail since August 2023, faces multiple cases launched against him by the military-controlled political puppets since his ouster from power in April 2022.
Khan and Bushra were awarded 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment under Section 409 (criminal breach of trust) of the Pakistan Penal Code and seven years under different sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The court also imposed a fine of PKR 16.4 million on each of them.
This court, while passing sentences, considered the old age of Imran Khan, as well as the fact that Bushra Imran Khan is a female, took a ‘lenient view’ in awarding lesser punishment, according to the judgment.
“The benefit of Section 382-B (period of detention to be considered while awarding sentence of imprisonment) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) was hereby given to the convicts,” it said.
A total of 21 witnesses appeared before the court during the trial.
Khan and Bushra were present in the court when the judgment was announced.
The former PM, in his recorded statement under Section 342 of the CrPC in the case, rejected the allegations, and alleged that the case was malicious, fabricated, and politically engineered.
The case was filed in July 2024 and was based on allegations that valuable items, including expensive watches, as well as diamond and gold jewelery sets, were sold by the former first couple without being deposited in the Toshakhana – the state gift repository.
Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani told Geo News that the gifts were not deposited, which they were legally bound to do.
Terming the incident unfortunate, he said, according to facts that came to light during the legal proceedings, the set’s actual value was Rs 70 million; however, its valuation was done at Rs 5.8-5.9 million. Unfortunately, Bushra Bibi and Imran Khan attempted to buy the set back at throwaway rates, he said.
The Toshakhana is a department under the Cabinet Division that stores gifts given to rulers and government officials by heads of other governments and foreign dignitaries. Once deposited, the gifts can be bought back following proper rules and procedures.
In October 2024, Bushra was granted bail by the Islamabad High Court in this case, and a month later, Khan was also granted bail in the same case. They were indicted in December 2024.
Meanwhile, the prosecution process went on in the Adiala Jail, where both Khan and his wife have already been incarcerated after conviction earlier this year in the Al-Qadir Trust case.
Both convicts can file appeals in the High Court against their convictions.
An unannounced ban has been placed on meeting Khan, who has been in prison since August 2023 in multiple cases, for more than a month. The last meeting with Khan was held on December 2, when his sister Uzma Khan was allowed to see him.
Adiala Jail authorities, however, claimed that the former cricketer-turned politician is in “good health”.
Last week, UN Special Rapporteur on torture Alice Jill Edwards called on the Pakistan government to take immediate and effective action to address reports of inhumane and undignified detention conditions of Khan in jail.
Khan’s solitary confinement should be lifted without delay. Not only is it an unlawful measure, extended isolation can bring about very harmful consequences for his physical and mental health, she said.
According to reports, Khan is not permitted outdoor activity or interaction with other detainees and is unable to join communal prayers. Visits from lawyers, family members and others authorized by the courts are frequently interrupted or ended prematurely.
Khan served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022.
Meanwhile, insurgents detonated bombs in an attempt to attack two trains including the frequently targeted Jaffar Express in Pakistan’s restive Baluchistan province, damaging railway tracks and disrupting services, officials said on Saturday.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Quetta, Shahid Nawaz, said one bomb blast damaged about three feet of railway track in Mushkaf, while another blast in the Dasht area caused further damage. In both cases, the Jaffar Express and Bolan Mail passenger trains were the target, he said.
Railway services were disrupted after tracks were damaged on the main line due to the explosions.
Baluch terrorists have attacked the Jaffar Express and Bolan Mail at least three times in the past two months, damaging tracks but causing no deaths.
On March 11, the train became the target of an unprecedented hijacking when terrorists fired on the locomotive and took nearly 400 passengers hostage.
Over 20 people were killed in the attack, while security forces rescued others and killed 33 insurgents.
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