A Pakistani court on Friday sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to prison after finding them guilty in a 190 million British pounds (USD 240 million) case.
Khan, a cricket legend who captained the national team to 1992 World Cup victory, was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
His wife received seven years of imprisonment.
Khan is currently lodged in jail.
Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana announced the order in a courtroom inside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where Khan has been kept for the past one year.
In addition to the prison sentences, the court imposed fines of PKR 1 million on Imran and PKR 500,000 on Bushra, reported The Express Tribune.
In case the fines are not paid, Imran would need to serve an additional six months in prison.
Bushra Bibi will have to stay in prison for three more months.
As per Dawn News report, the case alleges that Imran and Bushra obtained billions of rupees and land measuring hundreds of kanals from Bahria Town Ltd for legalising PKR 50 billion that was identified and returned to the country by the United Kingdom during the previous PTI government.
Amid tight security, the court announced the verdict, following which Bushra Bibi was arrested in the courtroom.
Calling the verdict politically motivated, PTI has announced it will challenge the conviction.
Khan was ousted from power in 2022 after a no-confidence motion was passed against him.
PTI leader Meher Bano Qureshi reacted to the development and wrote on X: “The real question here is why did Malik Riaz over pay? What favours were granted in return and when does NAB plan to pursue that case because this falls under corrupt practice.”
