After months of legal challenges, Imran Khan, the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and his wife, Bushra Bibi, received significant relief when a district and sessions court on Saturday approved their requests to annul their conviction in the iddat case, also referred to as the un-Islamic nikah case.
Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka delivered the short order, which had been reserved earlier in the day.
Khan and Bushra had been sentenced to seven years in prison and fined Rs500,000 each in February after a trial court deemed their nikah fraudulent, following a complaint from Bushra’s ex-husband, Khawar Maneka.
The couple challenged their conviction and sought varying relief from the Islamabad High Court (IHC). The recent court ruling stated that Khan and Bushra should be released immediately if there are no pending cases against them.
The court also rejected both petitions requesting the formation of a medical board and consultations with religious scholars. The release orders for the couple have been issued.
This verdict is crucial for Khan, who has been in custody since August last year due to a sentence in the Toshakhana criminal case and subsequent cases ahead of the elections scheduled for February 8.
Although he has secured relief in several other cases, including the £190 million reference and Toshakhana, and was acquitted in the cipher case earlier this month, the former prime minister remains in jail due to his conviction in the iddat case.
Khan has also been granted bail in multiple cases from May 9 in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad.
Last month, the IHC directed the district court to resolve pleas regarding the suspension of the sentence within ten days and those challenging the conviction within a month.
Following this order, Judge Majoka rejected Khan and Bushra’s pleas for suspension of their sentence on June 27, stating there were no grounds for such a suspension.
The 10-page ruling concluded that the petitions for suspension were dismissed, leading to strong criticism from the PTI, which labeled the decision as “absolutely ridiculous.” PTI leaders protested outside Adiala jail, where the court was set up for the security of the former prime minister, and vowed to challenge the verdict in the high court, condemning the politicization of personal matters.
Overview of the Iddat Case
The issue of the iddat case emerged when petitioner Muhammad Hanif claimed that Bushra Bibi had divorced her former husband in November 2017 and married Khan on January 1, 2018, before her iddat period had concluded, which is against Sharia law.
Initially, a district court in Islamabad rejected this plea, calling it “inadmissible” and beyond its jurisdiction, leading the petitioner to withdraw his application.
Subsequently, Bushra’s ex-husband Maneka filed a complaint about the “un-Islamic marriage” in the court of Civil Judge Qudratullah on November 25, 2023, under Sections 34, 496, and 496-B of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Khan and Bushra were indicted in the iddat case on January 16, 2024. After a lengthy 14-hour hearing at Adiala jail, the trial court reserved its verdict on February 2 and sentenced them to seven years each on February 3.
In the detailed 51-page verdict, the court maintained that evidence indicated both accused had a relationship prior to the “fraudulent” nikah in 2018.
Following their sentencing, the couple filed multiple pleas against their conviction.
Initially, District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand, who was handling the case, reserved the verdict on the suspension pleas on May 23, with a decision expected by May 29. However, due to Maneka’s expressed lack of confidence in him, Judge Arjumand requested the IHC to transfer the appeals to another court.
Upon the IHC’s approval, Judge Majoka took over the couple’s pleas.
