Islamabad: A local court of Islamabad rejected Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan and his wife petitions seeking suspension of sentences given by the lower court.
The district and session court judge Afzal Majoka pronounced the reserved verdict in the case.
The court had reserved the verdict on June 25 after directives from the IHC to decide the matter of suspension of the sentences within 10 days.
The PTI founder and Bushra were each sentenced to seven years in prison on February 3 earlier this year after a trial court found their nikah to be fraudulent as Khawar Maneka, Bushra’s ex-husband, moved the court against the couple’s marriage.
The court had also given one month for the decision on the petition filed by the couple against their conviction.
Meanwhile, Bushra had sought a decision on her plea filed in the sessions court seeking sentence suspension.
While the hearing on the couple’s pleas seeking annulment of their conviction in the said case will be resumed on July 2.
Bushra’s former husband Khawar Maneka had filed a complaint against the “un-Islamic marriage” of Khan and Bushra in the court of Civil Judge Qudratullah on November 25, 2023, under the under Sections 34, 496, 496-B of the Pakistan Penal Code.
The couple were indicted in the iddat case on January 16, 2024. After a 14-hour hearing in the Adiala jail, the trial court reserved its verdict on February 2 and handed out seven years imprisonment each to Imran and Bushra on February 3.
The case was also earlier heard by Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand against whom Maneka had indicated a lack of confidence, seeking a transfer of the case to the court of Judge Majoka by the Islamabad High Court.
PTI awaits a favourable decision as a major relief for its founding chairman as he has been acquitted in some cases or has acquired bail in others.
