Imran Khan

Following his arrest on 9 May 2023, violence targeted military and public facilities. Khan was prosecuted in several cases accusing him of inciting or facilitating these actions; he denies any responsibility. In 2025, at the bail stage, the Lahore High Court described evidence of conspiracy/abetment, after which the Supreme Court granted him bail in eight cases.

Khan and Bushra Bibi were each sentenced to seventeen years in a new case concerning the acquisition at a reduced price of a collection of high-value state gifts.

Attribution

Accused

Khan was initially sentenced to ten years in the cipher case for handling a secret diplomatic cable. On 3 June 2024, the Islamabad High Court overturned the conviction and acquitted him.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome

Khan and Bushra Bibi were sentenced to seven years in a case concerning the timing and validity of their marriage following Bibi's previous divorce. A court acquitted them on 13 July 2024.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Acquitted / conviction overturned

Attribution

Accused

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome

Khan and Bushra Bibi received another substantial sentence in a state gifts case in 2024. The sentence was subsequently suspended pending appeal.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

Khan, who was detained and disqualified, was unable to stand in the 2024 election. PTI-backed candidates largely stood as independents after the party lost its electoral symbol; they won the largest number of seats, but a rival coalition formed the government.

State of the evidence

Documented

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Khan's detention violated international law and occurred in a context of repression of his supporters, recommending his release.

State of the evidence

Documented

A court sentenced Khan to three years' imprisonment in a Toshakhana case in August 2023. A few weeks later, the Islamabad High Court suspended enforcement of the sentence pending appeal.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

Khan travelled to Moscow and met Vladimir Putin as the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, creating international controversy over the timing and diplomatic signal conveyed.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Khan claimed that a diplomatic cable demonstrated an American conspiracy to bring about his downfall through the no-confidence motion. Following his departure, Pakistan's National Security Committee stated that it had found no evidence of a foreign conspiracy.

Attribution

Personally implicated

After the deputy speaker rejected the no-confidence motion, Khan advised the president to dissolve the National Assembly. The Supreme Court unanimously overturned the deputy speaker's decision and the dissolution, declaring them unconstitutional and without legal effect.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Shared responsibility

Following the Supreme Court's restoration of the Assembly, Khan became the first Pakistani prime minister to be removed by a successful vote of no confidence.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Khan sparked an outcry following a remark directed at Maryam Nawaz during a rally, widely denounced as sexist and unworthy of a former prime minister.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Following a speech in which Khan announced his intention to take action against a judge and police officials, a terrorism case was registered against him. The Islamabad High Court subsequently ordered the removal of the anti-terrorism provisions.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

The ECP disqualified Khan in the Toshakhana case, finding that he had made inaccurate declarations concerning proceeds from the sale of state gifts.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Khan sustained gunshot wounds during his march towards Islamabad. Following the attack, he and his allies accused senior civilian and military officials of participating in a conspiracy against him, allegations rejected by the individuals and institutions concerned.

Attribution

Protagonist is the victim

Journalists and media rights organisations denounced an increase in attacks, harassment, economic pressure and censorship during Khan's government, as well as a heavily criticised proposal for a media regulator.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Shared responsibility

Khan prompted two waves of criticism in 2021 after linking the increase in sexual violence to "temptation", purdah and the way people dress, remarks denounced as victim-blaming.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Questioned about Uyghurs in Xinjiang, Khan stated that he accepted the Chinese authorities' account and downplayed or qualified Western reports of abuses, drawing criticism given his stated defence of Muslims elsewhere.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

At the time of the Taliban takeover of Kabul, Khan stated that Afghans had "broken the shackles of slavery", a phrase widely interpreted as approval of the change of regime.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

In a parliamentary speech, Khan stated that US forces had killed Osama bin Laden and that he had been "martyred", provoking major controversy in Pakistan and abroad.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Ahead of the 2018 election, the memoirs of his former wife Reham Khan triggered major political and personal controversy, with threats of defamation actions and competing allegations concerning the book's contents.

Attribution

Personally implicated

During the 2018 campaign, Khan defended blasphemy legislation and adopted a religiously conservative stance, drawing criticism from human rights organisations and opponents.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

The campaign that brought the PTI to power was marked by allegations from rival parties and observers that the military favoured Khan and exerted pressure on the media.

State of the evidence

Disputed

The Election Commission of Pakistan initiated contempt proceedings following statements by Khan describing the institution, among other things, as biased. After he apologised, the petitions were dismissed.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Khan successfully defended the defamation proceedings brought against him in the High Court by former players Ian Botham and Allan Lamb following cricket-related and ball-tampering allegations.

Attribution

Protagonist is the complainant

In the 1990s, Imran Khan acknowledged having used a bottle top to alter the condition of a ball during an earlier match in England. The admission reignited debate over ball-tampering practices of his era.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Attribution

Directly implicated