Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, wife acquitted in unlawful marriage case
A Pakistani court on Saturday acquitted former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, in an unlawful marriage case. The case against them was filed by Bibi's former husband, Khawar Farid Maneka, who alleged that the pair married during Bibi's Iddat period, a mandatory waiting period in Islam after a woman's divorce or death of her husband. The couple was sentenced to seven years in prison in February after a court found them guilty of breaking Islamic law.
They should be released immediately: Judge
"If they are not wanted in any other case, then Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi should be released [from jail] immediately," stated Judge Afzal Majoka after accepting their appeals. Notably, the unlawful marriage case was the last one that was keeping the PTI founder in jail. However, it remains unclear whether Khan will be released as a court cancelled his bail this week over accusations he incited riots by his supporters in May 2023.
PTI chief welcomes verdict, demands Khan's release
PTI chief Gohar Khan welcomed the verdict, calling it a victory for the independent judiciary. "All these cases were fake, and he will also get justice in all other cases," he said, demanding Khan's immediate release as this was the last case in which he was convicted. This judgment follows a major legal victory for Khan's PTI party when the Supreme Court declared them eligible for reserved seats in Parliament and provincial assemblies.
Khan's legal troubles and marriage history unveiled
Khan has been imprisoned since August last year after being sentenced in multiple cases ahead of the February 8 elections. He married Bibi in 2018, the same year he won the general elections and became prime minister. Bibi divorced her husband of 28 years in 2017 and developed a romantic relationship with Khan. This is Khan's third marriage.
