Imran Khan, former Pakistan PM, sentenced to 14 years in jail in land corruption case

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imram Khan was handed a 14-year prison sentence by a local court in a land corruption case related to the Al-Qadir Trust on Friday, ARY News reported.

The verdict in the case, the largest in terms of financial wrongdoing faced by Khan, was delivered by an anti-graft court in a prison in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where Khan has been jailed since August 2023.

Judge Nasir Javed Rana of the anti-corruption court announced the verdict that had been deferred thrice due to different reasons, last time on January 13.

The judge announced the verdict in a makeshift court set up in Adila jail.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in December 2023 filed the case against Khan (72), his wife Bushra Bibi (50) and six others, accusing them of causing a loss to the tune of 190 million pounds (PRs50 billion) to the national kitty.

However, Khan and Bibi have been prosecuted as all others, including a property tycoon, were out of the country.

The case revolves around allegations that an amount of PRs50 billion, returned to Pakistan by the UK’s National Crime Agency as part of a settlement with a property tycoon, was misused.

The funds were reportedly intended for the national treasury but were allegedly redirected for the personal benefit of the businessman who helped Bibi and Khan to set up a university.

Bibi, as a trustee of the Al-Qadir Trust, is accused of benefiting from this settlement, including acquiring 458 kanals of land for Al-Qadir University in Jhelum.