NEW DELHI: A Pakistani court ordered on Monday (July 15) that former prime minister Imran Khan (pic) and his wife Bushra Bibi be remanded in custody until July 22 on power abuse charges, Geo TV broadcaster reported, according to Sputnik.
Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau, an anti-corruption watchdog, brought these charges less than a day after a court in Islamabad acquitted Khan and his wife of an unlawful marriage charge. Earlier in February, the couple had been sentenced to seven years in prison for allegedly marrying too soon after Bibi’s divorce.
The court in Islamabad ordered the watchdog to interrogate the two suspects, currently held at Adiala prison in Rawalpindi, to appear before court next Monday. Their lawyer argued that the arrest was unlawful and that the appeal for their release was already under review by the Pakistani Supreme Court.
Khan, who led the Pakistani government from 2018 to 2022, was ousted from office in a vote of no confidence in April 2022. In August 2023, Khan was arrested in a fraud case involving the sale of valuables stored in the state treasury. Several other charges were later filed against him, including treason for distributing classified information.
During the appeals process, most of the charges against Khan were dropped, but the former prime minister remained in custody in the unlawful marriage case. - Bernama-Sputnik
