Founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan, along with his wife Bushra Bibi, were formally indicted by a local court on Tuesday in the alleged fraudulent marriage case.
The charges were read out by Senior Civil Judge Qudratullah in a courtroom set up at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where Imran Khan was present. However, Bushra Bibi did not appear in the court at the jail.
The court expressed displeasure over Bushra Bibi’s non-appearance and questioned her departure without court permission.
In response, her lawyer, Usman Gill, cited her ill health, stating that she had left for the hospital.
The prosecution contested the medical report, asserting that it lacked specific details about the treatment Bushra Bibi had undergone.
The court criticized the repeated requests for exemption based on medical reports, emphasizing that such requests should come from those not present in court.
Imran Khan, while on the rostrum, admitted to a lack of understanding of legal terms and initially hesitated to sign the charge sheet. However, after consultations with his lawyers, he eventually signed the document.
This development follows the Islamabad High Court (IHC) reserving its verdict on Bushra Bibi’s plea seeking the dismissal of Khawar Maneka’s case.
In her petition, she contested the admissibility of Maneka’s petition, arguing that a trial court lacked jurisdiction to hear it. She also urged the court to declare null and void the order of the additional sessions judge East on January 11.
Last month, Khawar Maneka filed a petition challenging the marriage of Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi, just a day after another petitioner withdrew a similar case.
Bushra Bibi asserted in her plea that her ex-husband’s complaint was filed with malicious intent, based on false and fabricated documents.
During Monday’s hearing, Bushra Bibi’s lawyer, Barrister Salman Akram Raja, highlighted that Maneka’s petition accused his former wife of being a fornicator, raising questions about the timing of these allegations, six years after their marriage ended.
Raja argued that Maneka’s house help’s testimony alleging Imran and Bushra of adultery lacked legal standing, as the law requires the testimony of two men in such cases.
The crux of Maneka’s petition revolves around the claim that Imran and Bushra’s nikah was “fraudulent” and took place during her iddat, the waiting period following her divorce.
Maneka accused the former prime minister of ruining his life and stigmatizing his family to achieve unethical and immoral objectives.
