Bushra Bibi says Imran is ‘well’

Lawyers denied access despite court orders; jail authorities say only former first lady allowed to meet PTI chief

ISLAMABAD:

The wife of former prime minister Imran Khan said her husband was well after seeing him on Thursday for the first time after his jailing, his lawyer said.

Imran was jailed last week after being convicted of corruption. He was then barred from politics for five years, preventing him from contesting an upcoming election.

Lawyer Naeem Panjutha said he and other members of PTI chief’s legal team were denied access despite court orders, saying jail authorities told him that a meeting could only be granted to former first lady Bushra Bibi.

"We just talked to her after she came out after about a 30-minute meeting, who said to let everyone know that he was well," he said. He added that Imran's wife said that he was still being kept in the same smaller, more austere C-class cell.

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Imran, 70, has been at the centre of political turmoil since he was ousted last year as prime minister in a no-confidence vote in April 2022, raising concerns about Pakistan's stability as it grapples with an economic crisis.

He has been barred from holding any public office for five years since he commenced his three-year prison sentence on Saturday on charges of unlawfully selling state gifts acquired by him and his family during his 2018-2022 tenure.

Imran, who has denied any wrongdoing, was arrested at his Lahore house and is currently in Attock jail where his legal team and party say living conditions were the worst that a former prime minister has been kept in.

"Charges of misdeclaration of assets have been proven against the PTI chairman," Additional and Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar mentioned in his judgement.

Judge Dilawar sentenced the PTI chief to three-year imprisonment, issuing arrest warrants against him and a fine of Rs100,000.

The judge also rejected Imran's petition against the maintainability of the case.

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The party of the former prime minister has moved the Supreme Court against the trial court's order, seeking to declare Judge Dilawar's verdict "null and void".

The authorities said Imran could approach a court for a better prison class which is his right, with facilities like an attached washroom, television, books and newspapers.

The Islamabad High Court has already sought a reply form the authorities on Imran’s plea, seeking to be shifted to A-class prison cell in garrison city of Rawalpindi.