Pakistan’s political crisis deepens as government seeks to ban Imran Khan’s party

The political party of imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan faces a potential ban by Pakistan’s government on charges of foreign funding and inciting riots, shortly after key acquittals for Mr. Khan.

First Look

Pakistan’s government plans to ban the party of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan on charges of illegally receiving funds from abroad and involvement in nationwide riots following his arrest last year, the information minister said July 15.

The decision is likely to significantly deepen the country’s political turmoil, which began after Mr. Khan’s 2022 ouster in a no-confidence vote in parliament. Mr. Khan, the main rival of current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, remains a popular figure despite his convictions in a series of cases that he says are politically motivated.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the government has “credible evidence” against Mr. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party. The government has long accused the party of receiving money from people and groups overseas. Under Pakistani law, political parties are not allowed to accept such donations.

Mr. Tarar said the government can ban the party under Pakistan’s Constitution but that the decision would be referred to the Supreme Court for its approval.

Mr. Khan’s party accused the coalition government headed by Mr. Sharif of panicking following a series of court rulings that threw out many of the cases against the former prime minister.

The July 15 announcement came two days after a court overturned convictions and seven-year sentences given to Mr. Khan and his wife. His supporters expected after the ruling that they would be released after almost one year in prison, but government authorities immediately arrested him again on charges related to last year’s riots.

The acquittal of Mr. Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, was related to the legality of their 2018 marriage. She was previously married to a man who claimed that they divorced in November 2017, less than three months before she married Mr. Khan. Islamic law requires a three-month waiting period before a new marriage.

Ms. Bibi said they divorced in August 2017, and the couple insisted that they did not violate the waiting period.

Mr. Khan has been embroiled in more than 150 cases since 2022, when he lost the no-confidence vote. He was arrested in May 2023, sparking violent demonstrations by his angry supporters, who mainly attacked military installations. Mr. Khan has blamed his removal on the United States and the powerful military, which has ruled Pakistan for half of its history since its independence from British colonial rule in 1947.

The U.S., Mr. Sharif, and the military have denied Mr. Khan’s claim.

Last year’s violence subsided only when the Supreme Court ordered Mr. Khan’s release. However, he was again arrested in early August 2023 after a court handed him a three-year jail sentence on corruption charges.

In recent months, Mr. Khan has been acquitted in several cases related to last year’s violence, but his bail was canceled this week in connection with one case pending in the eastern city of Lahore.

On July 12, the Supreme Court ruled that Mr. Khan’s party was improperly denied at least 20 seats in parliament, in a significant blow to the country’s fragile governing coalition.

Mr. Khan’s party had previously been excluded from a system that gives parties extra seats reserved for women and minorities in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament.

Mr. Tarar, the information minister, also accused Mr. Khan on July 15 of trying to damage diplomatic relations between Pakistan and the United States by alleging that his ouster as prime minister was a U.S.-led plot that had been carried out by the military and his rivals, including Mr. Sharif, who became prime minister after elections on Feb. 8 which Mr. Khan says were rigged.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.