Pakistan election officers reject former prime minister Khan’s candidacy in parliamentary election

LAHORE, Pakistan — Election officers in Pakistan rejected former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday as a candidate within the nation’s February parliamentary election. His attorneys have stated they may enchantment.

Khan is in jail serving a three-year sentence for corruption and in addition faces a stack of different prices, making it tough for him to run for workplace. But he nonetheless filed nomination papers, buoyed by an appeals court docket’s August determination to droop his prison conviction.

Election officers disallowed Khan‘s candidacy because of his conviction and what they said was his disqualification under the constitution, according to documents. They also rejected the candidacies of former members of his Cabinet.

The decisions were a fresh blow for Khan‘s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, which authorities have targeted during a monthslong crackdown.

The 71-year-old former cricketer is the country’s hottest opposition determine.

He was kicked out of workplace in April 2022 following a no-confidence vote in Parliament by his political opponents. Since then, authorities companies have pursued him within the courts.

His lawyer, Azhar Siddique, stated the rejection uncovered the Election Commission’s bias. He blamed the fee and “invisible forces” for Khan’s disqualification.

Another of his attorneys, Rai Muhammad Ali, described the rejection of Khan’s papers as an injustice to Pakistan.

“We want transparent elections,” Ali stated. “These situations are being deliberately created to evade the election. They are all scared. We will not let them escape.”