Ex-PM Khan barred from elections for five years

Former prime minister Imran Khan has been barred from holding public office after the top election tribunal found him guilty of unlawfully selling gifts from foreign dignitaries and heads of state, a lawyer and a minister said."The ECP has declared Imran Khan was involved in corrupt practices," Gohar Khan, one of his lawyers, told AFP. "We are going to challenge it in the Islamabad High Court right now."Dozens of his supporters attacked vehicles as they left the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) headquarters after the ruling, and police detained one of Khan's security guards after he fired a shot into the ground.In the eastern city of Lahore, his supporters blocked some roads, while in Faisalabad, they used burning tyres to stop traffic.On Twitter, Islamabad police said security in the capital was on "high alert".The ruling adds to the political and economic uncertainty plaguing Pakistan since earlier this year when Khan was ousted from power, and supporters took to the streets in different cities in protest, blocking roads and highways and setting tyres on fire.The 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was accused of misusing his 2018-2022 premiership to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than 140mn Pakistani rupees ($635,000).The gifts included watches given by a royal family, according to government officials, who have alleged previously that Khan's aides sold them in Dubai.According to a list shared by Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, the gifts include seven wristwatches, six made by watchmaker Rolex, and the most expensive a "Master Graff limited edition" valued at 85mn Pakistani rupees ($385,000).The list, which Reuters could not independently verify, also contained perfumes, diamond jewellery and dinner sets.Khan in a statement later yesterday denied any wrongdoing and termed the decision "biased", adding he had legally purchased the items.He called on supporters to stop protests, saying that he would challenge the ruling in court and it would likely be overturned.The ECP is yet to officially release a ruling providing details such as how long the former premier would be barred from public office.Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar told a conference yesterday that Khan would be disqualified for five years.Since being removed from office, the former prime minister has held protest gatherings across the country calling for snap elections, but the government has said they will be held as scheduled in October or November next year.The political instability has also fuelled economic uncertainty, with international ratings agencies questioning if the current government can maintain difficult economic policies in the face of political pressure and looming polls.Under Pakistani law, a legislator found guilty of corruption or misuse of public office can be barred for up to five years.Faisal Chaudhry, a lawyer in Khan's team, told Reuters that the tribunal had no jurisdiction in the matter and that a challenge would be filed."It's an illegal and unconstitutional order," he said.Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the ruling, however, writing on Twitter that the prime minister's post was made into a source of personal income through "corrupt practices"."The idol of 'honesty and trustworthiness' was shattered," Sharif said.Michael Kugelman, the director of South Asia Institute at The Wilson Centre said: "No matter how you slice it, and no matter how it plays out, the ruling worsens an all-encompassing political crisis that will make it all the more difficult to address Pakistan’s perfect storm of other crises – economic stress, resurgent terrorism, and floods."Khan supporters protested in different cities, officials said.In the northwestern city of Peshawar, where Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party runs the provincial government, groups of supporters, dozens each in size, blocked a number of key roads including the highway connecting the city to the capital Islamabad, to the dismay of drivers."I am going to our village for the weekend with my family and was waiting in the car for more than two hours as the roads are blocked by the PTI workers," said Hameed Khan in Peshawar. "We didn't disqualify their leader, then why do they punish us?"A few dozen protesters tried to block one key artery into Islamabad and were pushed back with teargas, said police official Sohail Khan.He said that the protesters attacked the police with bricks, injuring three officials, and had tried unsuccessfully to block others roads in the capital as well.Dozens of Imran Khan’s supporters also blocked roads in the eastern city of Lahore, setting fire to tyres.Khan opponent Maryam Nawaz, from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), told reporters in London in recorded comments telecast by local Geo News TV: "It is proved now that he is a certified thief.""He who would spread lies about alleged corruption of his political opponents has been caught red handed," tweeted Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.Legal experts and analysts were more circumspect, however."The silver lining for Mr Khan is that ... he hasn't been disqualified by the apex court so he has a right of appeal," independent lawyer Osama Malik told AFP."This decision will escalate the political tension in the country and the situation will deteriorate," said analyst Hassan Askari Rizvi.