ISLAMABAD (Dispatches) - A Pakistani court on Wednesday indicted former prime minister Imran Khan on charges of selling state gifts during his four years in power, a day after his arrest in an unrelated fraud case sparked unrest that killed at least five people.
The action against ex-cricket star Khan, 70, comes at a precarious time for the South Asian country of 220 million people as it grapples with a severe economic crisis and a delay to an International Monetary Fund bailout since November.
At least four people died in clashes in the northwestern city of Peshawar on Wednesday, a hospital official said, as Khan’s supporters clashed with police across the country in response to his arrest by the anti-graft agency in a separate case related to land fraud. Another person died on Tuesday.
Khan’s indictment followed a decision by the Election Commission of Pakistan in October, which found him guilty of illegally selling state gifts between 2018 and 2022 and barred him from holding public office until the next election due in November. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Mohsin Shahnawaz Ranjha, a lawmaker from Pakistan’s ruling coalition who was a plaintiff in the case against Khan on state gifts, confirmed his indictment and said the former premier had put the “country’s peace at stake”.
Khan’s colleagues in his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his indictment. His legal team has challenged his arrest in the Supreme Court.