ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Pakistani court on Saturday convicted and sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife to seven years in prison on a charge that their 2018 marriage violated the law, officials and a defense lawyer said.
The verdict follows another case in which Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were sentenced to 14 years in prison on Wednesday for corruption. It comes ahead of Feb. 8 parliamentary elections in which Khan has already been disqualified because of his graft convictions.
The lawyer for the couple, Intisar Panjutha, said the verdict was announced by Judge Qudrat Ullah a day after the trial ended. Khan and his family insist the trial is politically motivated.
The prosecution said Khan and his wife violated the law that a woman must wait three months before marrying again. Bibi had been married previously.
It was Khan’s fourth conviction since 2022, when he was ousted from power. The sentences will be served concurrently.