Following his conviction in a corruption case, Pakistan's highest electoral body disqualified jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan for five years on Tuesday, news agency PTI reported. An Islamabad trial court sentenced Khan, 70, to three years in prison on Saturday in the Toshakhana corruption case, in which the beleaguered former prime minister is accused of benefitting from the sale of pricey official gifts while in office. Punjab police later nabbed Khan at his Zaman Park mansion in Lahore.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) banned Khan for five years in a notification published on Tuesday.
The ECP referenced the court ruling and ruled Khan ineligible under Article 63(1)(h) of the Constitution, as amended by Section 232 of the Elections Act of 2017.
"Therefore, Mr. Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi is disqualified for five years and is also de-notified as a returned candidate from constituency NA-45 Kurram-I,” the notification was quoted by PTI in its report.
Earlier, Khan had filed a plea in the Islamabad High Court against the trial court's ruling, claiming that it was "unsustainable" and "liable to be set aside."
A two-member bench will hear the petition on Wednesday.
What Is Toshakhana Case?
The Toshakhana department store, founded in 1974, sells presents and other valuable things received by governmental figures. It is mandatory for officials to declare gifts and other similar items received to the Cabinet Division, according to its guidelines. Only the president and prime minister are excluded and can keep presents worth less than 30,000 Pakistani Rupees (PKR). Pakistan's two premiers can also keep the pricey presents from Toshakhana by paying a set proportion of their worth as determined by the government.
Imran Khan, Pakistan's Prime Minister from August 2018 to April 2022, was accused of purposely concealing information about the gifts he received from the Toshakhana during his term. Khan allegedly sold these items, which included a Graff wristwatch, a ring, and a Rolex watch, and neglected to declare the revenues from these transactions.
Details of Imran Khan's Toshakhana action were leaked to the media during a political shift in Pakistan, according to Pakistani newspaper Dawn.
On August 4, members of the National Assembly (MNA) from the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), a new ruling alliance of the PML-N government in Pakistan, filed a referral with the Speaker of the National Assembly, demanding the disqualification of the deposed Prime Minister as a member of the legislature as well.
According to the reference, the prime minister neglected to report the proceeds from the sale of the presents in his yearly statement of assets and liabilities, which all MPs are supposed to submit to the ECP.