ISLAMABAD: A district and sessions court here today declared the case of “illegal” marriage of former prime minister Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi admissible for hearing.
Announcing the verdict, reserved a day earlier, Civil Judge Qudratullah issued notices to the PTI chairman and his wife to appear in the court on July 20.
Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Muhammad Azam Khan had remanded the case to a civil judge last week and dismissed another civil court’s verdict declaring a petition challenging the legality of the marriage inadmissible.
The petitioner, Muhammad Hanif, claimed that Bushra Bibi was divorced by her former husband in November 2017 and married Khan on January 1, 2018, despite the fact that her iddat period had not ended, “which is against the Sharia and Muslim norms.”
The complainant submitted in the court the statements of Mufti Muhammad Saeed — who conducted the marriage between Imran and Bushra, and Awn Chaudhry — Imran’s close friend — one of the witnesses at the wedding.
Saeed, who solemnised the couple’s Nikah, had said that the PTI chief married Bushra Bibi during the latter’s iddat (the time a woman goes into isolation after her husband dies or divorces her), despite knowing everything.
In his statement to a lower court, Saeed said he had solemnised Khan’s Nikah with Bushra Bibi on January 1, 2018, over the assurance of a woman claiming to be the former first lady’s sister.
“Then the former premier contacted me again on February 2018 and requested me to solemnise his Nikah with Bushra Bibi again as the first time it was against the Shariah,” Saeed stated before the court.
He said that the first time when the Nikah was solemnised, Bushra Bibi’s Iddat hadn’t ended.
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