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| Pakistan: Imran Khan barred from politics for five years |
Imran Khan, the nation's former prime minister, has been
prohibited from entering public office for five years by the election
commission.
The judgment was made public by the Pakistani Election
Commission three days after Mr. Khan received his three-year jail term for
corruption.
Following Tuesday's announcement, Mr. Khan will also lose
his position as an MP.
The Pakistani government disputes his assertion that the
accusations are partisan in nature.
Before the decision, Marriyum Aurangzeb, Pakistan's minister
of information and television, told the BBC: "You have to be held legally
liable for your actions. Politics have nothing to do with this. A person must
be arrested if their guilt has been established by the court.
After a disagreement with the country's strong military, Mr.
Khan, 70, was forced out of office in a no-confidence vote last year. He had
been elected as Pakistan's leader in 2018.
On Saturday, a jury found him guilty on charges that he
misdeclared information about gifts from foreign dignitaries and the proceeds
of their suspected sale.
Rolex watches, a ring, and a set of cufflinks were among the
presents, which were said to be valued at about 140 million Pakistani rupees
($635,000; £500,000).
According to local media, Mr. Khan's five-year ban from
competing in elections was in accordance with that guilty verdict.
According to Pakistani law, a person who has been convicted
is prohibited from running for public office for a predetermined amount of
time.
The guilty judgment has been contested by his legal team,
and the Islamabad High Court will hear the case on Wednesday.
Currently, the former prime minister is detained in a jail
outside of Islamabad.
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