A district court in Pakistan has dismissed appeals by former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to suspend their sentences in a case concerning an illegal marriage. Both were sentenced earlier this year to seven years in prison and fined Rs 5,00,000 each for violating Islamic law regarding the waiting period (iddat) for remarriage after divorce or widowhood. The case, initiated by Bibi’s ex-husband Khawar Maneka, alleged that they married without her completing the mandatory iddat. The court’s decision means they remain incarcerated at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.
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- Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi’s appeals to suspend their sentences were rejected by a Pakistan district court.
- They were sentenced to seven years in jail and fined Rs 5,00,000 each for contracting marriage without Bibi observing the iddat period.
- The case was filed by Bibi’s ex-husband Khawar Maneka in November 2023.
- The court’s decision dashed hopes of their release from Adiala Jail.
- Earlier, the case was heard by district and sessions judge Shahrukh Arjumand, who later recused himself.
- The case was then transferred to additional district and sessions judge Afzal Majoka.
- The Islamabad High Court had instructed the sessions court to decide within 10 days.
- Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi married in 2018, the year Khan became Prime Minister of Pakistan.
- Bibi, initially Khan’s spiritual guide, divorced her husband of 28 years to marry Khan.
- This marks the third marriage for Khan, a former cricket star with a controversial past.
