Islamabad, Pakistan – Since his impeachment last year, former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been hit with dozens of charges, including several in which he risks arrest.
In an interview with Al Jazeera on Thursday, Khan said at least 85 cases have been filed against him across the country. “Every other day, a case comes up,” he said.
The cases against the 70-year-old cricketer turned politician include charges of corruption, terrorism, contempt of court, rioting and even blasphemy.
Here is an overview of the main charges against Khan:
Corruption
The immediate legal challenge Khan faces concerns the gifts he received from abroad when he was prime minister between August 2018 and April 2022.
Prosecutors allege that Khan sold those gifts and hid his wealth in financial statements submitted to the Election Commission.
On March 7, the Supreme Court in Islamabad issued an arrest warrant against him in the case. The former prime minister evaded arrest and instead petitioned the same court asking for the order to be withdrawn.
The court then asked Khan to appear in court on March 13. The opposition politician, who had evaded the courtroom with threats to his life, did not show up.
An angry court subsequently issued an arrest warrant against Khan, sparking violence in Lahore for two days as police, in an attempt to arrest him, clashed with hundreds of the politician’s supporters outside his home.
A court in Islamabad on Thursday rejected Khan’s request to suspend his order to appear in court. The warrant increases the chance of another police attempt to arrest him.
The Islamabad High Court had previously given Khan a March 18 deadline to appear.
On Thursday, he told Al Jazeera he will attend. “I will appear in court on the 18th,” he said, calling the police action to arrest him four days before the deadline “unlawful”.
Khan also rejected allegations about selling the state gifts he received. “Let me clarify this claim about state gifts… Everything I have done is legal,” he said.
“Terrorism”
Khan is also being charged with “terrorism” over a speech he gave at one of the many rallies he has held since losing power to demand immediate national elections.
Addressing his supporters in Islamabad last August, Khan made some remarks to his political opponents and police and judicial officials. In his speech, Pakistani party leader Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) named a female judge who had ordered the arrest of one of his close associates.
The statement to the judge led to a charge of “terrorism” against Khan. If convicted, he could even risk being disqualified from running for election or holding public office in the future – a setback he cannot afford as he seeks to return to power in national elections later this year are planned.
If Khan is arrested, the PTI has threatened mass protests, exacerbating difficulties for a government already mired in economic crisis.
Riot
After clashes between Khan’s supporters and security forces earlier this week, the police in Lahore filed several criminal charges against him.
The first intelligence report, dubbed FIR, shows Khan has been charged with rioting, attempted murder, incitement to violence and criminal conspiracy under the country’s anti-terrorism law.
Pakistan’s counter-terrorism law, passed in 1997, carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and even the death penalty.
Similar charges were also filed against Khan last October after his party associates protested outside the office of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
The demonstration was in response to the ECP’s decision to disqualify Khan from attending parliament for sessions on the state gift case.
Khan was also charged with at least 17 counts in several police stations in Islamabad after a “long march” he led last May to protest his removal from power.
In almost all cases, charges included incitement to violence, riots, damage to public property and criminal harassment.
Khan was granted bail in all cases prior to the arrest.
