Imran Khan's legal trouble mounts, Islamabad Court issues arrest warrants in two cases

Legal trouble continues to mount for Imran Khan, Pakistan's ousted prime minister, as a court in Islamabad has issued fresh arrest warrants against him in two more cases. 

In the Toshakhana reference case, the 71-year-old is accused of not disclosing information related to the gifts presented to him during his tenure as the prime minister. The Election Commission of Pakistan has already disqualified Khan for holding political office for the next five years, in connection to the case.

The “190 million pounds" Al-Qadir case involves allegations of corruption and abuse of authority against the ex-PM. Khan's legal counsel has rejected the charges in both the cases, calling them baseless and “politically motivated".

According to Pakistani media reports, the Islamabad court has directed the jail superintendent to ensure compliance of the warrants issued against Khan. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), a federal investigation body, has moved an application for complying with the arrest warrants, the reports added.

Khan, the chief of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) political party, was first convicted by a lower court in the Toshakhana case in August and sentenced to three years of imprisonment. The Islamabad High Court suspended his sentence in the same month, but the former premier continues to remain in prison as he was subsequently booked in the ‘cypher’ case.

In the cypher case, Khan, along with his close aide and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, has been accused of leaking state secrets.

Meanwhile, Khan's rival and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif has been granted bail in several cases. Speculations are rife that the ban imposed on Sharif, a former prime minister, from holding political office would be lifted ahead of the next general elections.

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