Former Prime Minister of Pakistan and leader of the opposition party Movement for Justice (MJM, Tehreek-e-Insaf) Imran Khan was sentenced to another ten years in prison. local TV channel GeoTV reports. Al Jazeera clarifiesthat we are talking about a case of disclosure of state secrets.
The charges against Khan were brought after he, speaking at a rally on March 27, 2022, said that he received an encrypted document from a foreign state that “conspired with his political rivals” to achieve the removal of DZS from power. As Dawn wrote:the Pakistani Cabinet announced the theft of diplomatic encrypted documents, which is considered an “unforgivable crime” and a violation of the Official Secrets Act of 1923.
According to Geo TV, Khan brought this letter to the rally, but did not reveal the full contents and did not specify which country he was talking about. However, a few days later, the politician accused the United States of conspiracy and said that US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Louis pushed for his resignation at a meeting with former Pakistani ambassador to the US Majid Khan in March 2022.
The Intercept, citing Pakistani government documents, wrotethat Louis expressed dissatisfaction with Islambad’s position regarding the armed conflict in Ukraine. Khan’s trip to Moscow to meet with President Vladimir Putin (*international criminal) on February 24, the day full-scale military action began, “infuriated Washington,” the story said.
Imran Khan, who headed the Pakistani government from 2018 to 2022, is already in prison. Back in August 2023, he was sentenced to three years in prison and a fine of 100 thousand rupees (about $1.2 thousand) on charges of money laundering.
Interfax news agency, 08/05/2023, “Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan sentenced to three years in prison”: A Pakistani court sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan to three years in prison on corruption charges. Al Jazeera reported on Saturday. Khan was also given a fine of 100 thousand rupees. He was found guilty of selling gifts received as prime minister during foreign visits. […]
Previously, a number of criminal cases were opened against Khan. In particular, he is accused of receiving gifts from foreign leaders and earning a total of about $630 thousand from this. In March, after clashes between police officers and Khan’s supporters, the Pakistani capital police opened a criminal case against the ex-prime minister, who was accused of terrorism. — Insert K.ru
Khan was removed from office in the spring of 2022, when parliament announced a vote of no confidence in him. In May 2023, the politician was arrested for the first time. After this, mass protests began in Pakistan, more than a thousand people were detained. Two days later, the Supreme Court declared Khan’s arrest illegal. After this, the former head of government was released on bail.
Along with Khan, this time the former head of the Pakistani Foreign Ministry and vice-chairman of the Tehreek-i-Insaf party, Shah Mahmud Qureshi, also received a ten-year term.
“Russian BBC Service”, 01/30/2024, “Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan received another 10 years in prison before the elections”: Imran Khan, a former star of Pakistan’s most popular sport, cricket, became Pakistan’s prime minister in 2018, promising to fight corruption and lift the country out of its economic crisis. He was also supported by the military, which has significant influence in Pakistan.
Khan declared the fight against corruption to be the main focus of his domestic policy. In foreign policy, tensions with India remained under him and Islamabad’s relations with the United States, which froze military aid to Pakistan amounting to $1.3 billion a year, worsened. At the same time, Khan helped improve Pakistan’s relations with China and Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism).
In April 2022, he was removed from power as a result of a vote of no confidence. According to analysts, this happened because he lost the support of the very generals who helped him take the prime minister’s chair. It was replaced by a shaky coalition of dynastic parties that had historically ruled Pakistan. — Insert K.ru