Here Are The Charges Against Him And What He Claims

Topline

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was dramatically arrested by paramilitary troops on charges of corruption Tuesday, inflaming already volatile social tensions and sparking protests across the country as the former cricket star fights allegations of bribery.

Imran Khan was arrested on corruption charges.

AFP via Getty Images

Key Facts

Khan was arrested on corruption charges at the Islamabad High Court by agents from Pakistan’s anti-corruption watchdog, the National Accountability Bureau.

Officials said Khan’s arrest is linked to a land deal involving the Al-Qadir Trust, a charitable trust Khan and his wife Bushra Wattoo, also known as Bushra Bibi, established in 2018 when he was still in office.

Government ministers allege the trust, which the couple control and are sole trustees, provided cover for Khan to receive bribes in the form of valuable land worth millions of dollars.

In particular, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told reporters Khan used the trust as a front to receive land from Pakistani property developer Malik Riaz Hussain—purportedly to build a university—while his administration struck a deal with the tycoon that lost Pakistan’s treasury nearly $240 million.

Law Minister Azam Tarar said Khan was arrested for not cooperating with the anti-graft agency’s investigations, according to the Washington Post.

Khan, in a pre-recorded statement released after his arrest, denied the allegations and said he was “detained on incorrect charges.”

News Peg

Khan was arrested by paramilitary forces at Islamabad High Court, where he was appearing to face separate charges of corruption. His lawyers unsuccessfully challenged the legality of the arrest, though the court noted Khan should not have been removed forcibly from the courtroom. A former cricket star, Khan ascended to Pakistan’s highest office upon a wave of populism in 2018 with the blessing of the country’s powerful military. Though he lost this support following his government’s handling of numerous economic crises and was ousted by parliament in April 2022, he remains an immensely popular figure among the public and was expected to do very well in upcoming elections. He has been accused of being involved in more than 100 criminal cases since being forced from office, including corruption, terrorism and blasphemy, according to Al Jazeera. He has vigorously rejected the allegations as politically motivated plots, sometimes claiming Washington was behind his downfall, and has rejected the legitimacy of successive governments. Khan and PTI officials have frequently claimed past attempts to arrest him are merely veiled efforts to remove him from the political playing field before people go to the polls. Khan was wounded in an assassination attempt in late 2022, which he blamed on government figures.

What To Watch For

Khan is due to appear before an anti-corruption tribunal on Wednesday. Officials have asked for permission to hold Khan in custody for 14 days.

Tangent

Khan is a popular figure and his arrest has inflamed already high tensions in Pakistan. He and his party actively encouraged supporters to take to the street in protest and demonstrations erupted in cities across the country on Tuesday, including in Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar. Officials restricted access to social platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter in a bid to restore calm.

Big Number

130. That’s how many legal cases there are involving PTI leaders, party workers and a welfare trust allegedly used for prohibited campaign funding, according to Foreign Policy, citing court documents provided by PTI. The group’s lawyer told the outlet Khan and members and supporters of the party stand accused of as many as 140 crimes. This number will almost certainly have grown given recent developments.