After months of their continuing legal woes, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi’s got much relief as a district and sessions court on Saturday accepted their pleas seeking annulment of their conviction in the iddat case — also known as the un-Islamic nikah case.
Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka announced short order reserved earlier in the day today.
The PTI founder and Bushra were sentenced to seven years in prison and awarded a fine of Rs500,000 each, in February earlier this year after a trial court found their nikah to be fraudulent as Khawar Maneka, Bushra’s ex-husband, moved the court against the couple’s marriage.
The couple had then challenged their conviction and had even moved the IHC seeking varying relief from the court.
The court, in its verdict, has said that Khan and his wife should be immediately released if they are not wanted in any other case.
“Both the petitions seeking the formation of a medical board and consultations with the religious scholars are hereby rejected,” the verdict stated.
The court has also issued release orders for the incarcerated couple.
The verdict holds significance for Khan who has been behind bars since August last year after he was sentenced in the Toshakhana criminal case and subsequently sentenced in other cases ahead of the February 8 elections.
Despite securing relief in other cases including £190 million reference and Toshakhana, and acquittal in the cipher case earlier this month, the former premier remains behind bars due to his conviction in the iddat case.
Other than these four cases, including the iddat case, the former PM isn’t under arrest in any other case and it would be intriguing to see whether today’s verdict will see Khan coming out of prison or not.
Khan has also been granted bail in several May 9 cases registered in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad.
