Former Pakistani prime minister remains in custody

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s former prime minister spent a third day in Attock prison in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

His lawyers plan to appeal his conviction in connection with an alleged government treasury corruption case.

Khan, who is also chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the country’s largest political party, was arrested Saturday and jailed.

A court had found him guilty of selling state gifts from foreign dignitaries worth more than 140 million Pakistani rupees during his time as prime minister.

The court also barred him from contesting elections or holding public office for the next five years.

“He has been found guilty of corrupt practices by hiding the benefits he accrued from the national exchequer willfully and intentionally. He cheated while providing information of gifts he obtained from Toshakhana which later proved to be false and inaccurate,” said the court.

Following his arrest, the PTI Core Committee, chaired by Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, demanded Khan’s immediate release.

He expressed concern over threats against his life and the conditions of his arrest.

Critics have expressed doubts about the fairness of the trial and its rushed nature.

They say that accountability trials have been used in Pakistan’s political history as a tool to interfere in the democratic process.

This is the second time in three months that Khan has been arrested.

Khan’s lawyer, Naeem Haider Panjotha, said the jail had become a “no-go area” for his lawyers and the public.

He said the way the verdict was announced appeared to be an act of revenge.

He said the ousted prime minister was not given a free trial according to the rules of jurisprudence.

Human rights activist and lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir described Khan’s arrest and disqualification as a form of pre-election rigging.

In a pre-recorded message released on his official social media platforms, Khan said: “In the wake of my arrest … I want you to continue peaceful protests and not to sit quietly inside your houses.”

Khan’s arrest triggered protests in Peshawar in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

But officials imposed restrictions to ban gatherings for five days and some of supporters of Khan were arrested.