Pakistan’s ex-PM Imran Khan granted bail in state gifts case, his party says
A court in Pakistan has granted bail to jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan in a case relating to the illegal sale of state gifts, his political party says.
The embattled politician, now 72, has been in prison since August last year, but it remains unclear if he will be released given he faces other cases, including one accusing him of inciting violence against the state.
One of the lawyers for the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), Salman Safdar, said “if the official order is received today, his family and supporters will approach the authorities for his release”.
He added that, to his knowledge, Khan has been granted bail or acquitted in all the cases he faces.
The case in which he was granted bail on Wednesday by the Islamabad High Court is known as the Toshakhana, or state treasury case.
It has multiple versions and charges that all revolve around allegations that Khan and his wife illegally procured and then sold gifts worth more than 140 million rupees ($2.5 million) in state possession during his prime ministership from 2018 to 2022.
Previously Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were both handed a 14-year sentence on the same charges.
That came after a three-year sentence handed to him in late 2023 in another version of the same case.
Their sentences have been suspended in appeals at the high court. Both deny any wrongdoing.
The gifts included diamond jewellery and seven watches, six of them Rolexes — the most expensive being valued at 85 million rupees.
Khan’s wife was released last month after being in the same prison as the former Prime Minister for months.
Reuters
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