The Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s three-year sentence on Tuesday. On Tuesday (August 29), imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan received comfort when the Islamabad High Court (IHC) delayed his three-year term in the Toshakhana case.
The hearing was presided over by Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, who delivered the much-anticipated judgement.
“A copy of the decision will be available shortly… “All we can say right now is that [Imran’s] request has been approved,” Farooq added.
Khan’s lawyer, Naeem Panjutha, also confirmed the judgment, saying the court had granted the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief’s request.
The HC’s decision comes just a week after the Supreme Court acknowledged ‘procedural faults’ in Khan’s conviction. However, the Supreme Court chose to await the HC’s verdict on Khan’s petition.
The Islamabad trial court condemned Khan to three years in prison in the Toshakhana case earlier this month (August 5) and barred him from politics for five years.
Following his detention, Khan’s party published a pre-recorded video in which he exhorted his supporters not to quit demonstrating.
“By the time this message reaches you, my Pakistanis, I will have been arrested and imprisoned.” My only request is that you not sit quietly at home. The battle I’m going through isn’t for myself; it’s for you. This is a struggle for future generations. If you don’t fight for your rights and instead live the life of a slave…Slaves, remember, have no independent lives. Slaves are similar to ants on land. “They never reach greater heights,” Khan added.
What is the Toshakhana corruption case all about?
The PTI president is accused of omitting information of gifts he kept from the Toshakhana – the treasury established in 1974 where gifts donated to government officials from foreign officials are held – in his asset declarations. In August 2022, the coalition government led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) initiated the lawsuit against Imran.
Khan allegedly made $36 million from the sale of three watches given to him. It is claimed that he never deposited some gifts in the treasury, in violation of the rule that allows the prime minister to keep the gifts only after paying a specified amount. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) later announced that Khan had been disqualified under Article 63(1)(p) of the Pakistani constitution.
