Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been sentenced to 17 years in prison after a court found them guilty of illegally retaining and selling valuable state gifts in the latest corruption case against the embattled politician.
The verdict was delivered by Special Court Judge Shahrukh Arjumand at the high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where the 72-year-old Khan has been detained since August 2023. The case relates to luxury watches gifted to Khan by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during official visits.
Prosecutors argued that Khan and his wife purchased the watches from the state at a heavily discounted price, in breach of Pakistan's gift rules governing the Toshakhana, or state treasury that stores gifts received by government officials.
The couple received 10 years of rigorous imprisonment under Pakistan's penal code for criminal breach of trust and an additional seven years under anti-corruption laws. This brings Khan's total prison sentences across six different corruption cases to 65 years.
Khan's political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, denounced the ruling as "a black chapter in history" and called the proceedings a "sham." Khan has consistently denied wrongdoing in all cases, claiming they are politically motivated to keep him from returning to power.
UN experts have condemned Khan's imprisonment as inhumane, with UN Special Rapporteur on torture Alice Jill Edwards warning that his detention amounts to torture. Khan served as Pakistan's prime minister from 2018 until April 2022, when he was removed through a no-confidence vote.
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