On Wednesday, former Pakistani PM and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan was charged with contempt of the country’s electoral body.
Khan has been indicted on allegations that he made derogatory comments about the Chief Election Commissioner.
The Indictment
PTI lawyer Intazar Hussain Panjutha said that Imran was indicted in the absence of his lawyers.
Former Information Minister and Khan’s close aide, Fawad Chaudhry, has also been indicted in the case.
Ex Pakistan PM Imran Khan charged with contempt of electoral watchdog - lawyer https://t.co/uxDso9qS5L pic.twitter.com/jhqCQBFgaN
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 3, 2024
The case was heard by a four-judge bench headed by Nisar Ahmen Durrani in-camera in the Adiala Jail, where Khan and Chaudhry are jailed.
The hearing of the case has been adjourned till 16 January.
The ECP accused Khan and his colleagues of using “intemperate and insulting language” against the Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan.
Khan allegedly called the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Rajaa and other officials “personal servants” of former PM Shehbaz Sharif.
Sharif came to power after Khan was ousted from power following a no-confidence vote in the parliament.
Rejection of Nomination, Khan’s Rising Cases
The development came after the ECP rejected the PTI chief’s nomination for the upcoming general elections on 8 February.
The move has drawn flak on many fronts, with people alleging that the rejection has been announced on “fake and flimsy” grounds.
On 5 August, the cricketer-turned-politician was sentenced to a three-year term in the Toshakhana Case, wherein he was accused of unlawfully selling state gifts during his tenure from 2018-2022.
While the court suspended his three-year sentence, he continues to remain in jail as he faces multiple cases.
Ahead of the elections, a Pakistani special court indicted Khan for leaking secret diplomatic cables in the Cipher Case.
He was also barred from contesting elections for the next five years.
Khan has denied all charges and said that he is being hounded by the powerful military, which wants to keep him away from polls. The election watchdog claims that Khan’s candidacy was rejected because of his conviction in cases related to corruption.
Moreover, in another blow to Khan’s party, the PTI has also been denied the usage of its iconic cricket bat electoral symbol. However, the party has said that it would still go to polls even without the symbol.
Election Drama in Pakistan
The arrest of Khan and the pronouncement of sentences sparked widespread protests across Pakistan.
The PTI chief has held that he was ousted from power wrongly as a part of a conspiracy. Documents have emerged in recent times suggesting that the US encouraged Pakistan to oust Khan over differences in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
At present, a caretaker government under PM Anwaarul Haq Kakar has been established in the country till the election procedure is completed.
Amid the incarceration of Khan, former PM Nawaz Sharif, who was in exile, has returned to Pakistan. The three-time PM was not in the country for four years and had been found guilty of corruption earlier. He was disqualified from public office for life by the country’s apex court.
Ex-#Pakistan PM #ImranKhan charged with contempt of electoral watchdog https://t.co/ejIxyxLDiL pic.twitter.com/DQgzZzoMU4
— Hindustan Times (@htTweets) January 3, 2024
Ever since Sharif’s return to the country, the cases against him have been quashed, and his nomination papers for the upcoming polls have been accepted.
PTI has challenged the acceptance of Sharif’s nomination. The party has objected to the discriminatory treatment meted out to its leaders by the election body. It has also appealed against the rejection of the candidatures of multiple party leaders, including that of Khan.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s independent human rights commission has claimed that there is little chance that the upcoming parliamentary elections will be free and fair owing to “pre-poll rigging.”