Court dismisses plea against Imran’s nikah

ISLAMABAD: The Civil Judge, Islamabad Qudrat Ullah dismissed a petition challenging the nikah between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi on Friday after it was withdrawn by the petitioner.

The court disposed of a petition filed against former Prime Minister Imran Khan over alleged un-Islamic Nikkah with Bushra Bibi during her “Iddat” days. The petitioner, Muhammad Hanif, said he wanted to withdraw the case due to some technical reasons. The judge approved the plea and disposed of the case. Hanif had moved the court seeking legal action against the 71-year-old PTI chief for marrying Bushra during her ‘Iddat’ period. The three-month Iddat period is mandatory for a Muslim woman following the death of her husband or the dissolution of the marriage.

In his application to the court, the petitioner said, “For the time being, the applicant wants to withdraw the complaint due to technical reasons.” “If permission to withdraw the complaint is not accorded, the applicant shall suffer irreparable loss,” the report said, citing the application. Judicial Magistrate (East) Qudrat Ullah granted permission for the complaint’s withdrawal and wrapped up the case.

Hanif had claimed that Bushra Bibi was divorced by her former husband in November 2017 and she married Khan on January 1, 2018, even though her Iddat period had not ended, “which is against Sharia and Muslim norms,” the report said. He had submitted the statements of Mufti Saeed, the cleric who solemnized the couple’s marriage in 2018.

Bushra, 49, hails from a family of landowners in Punjab. Her first marriage, which lasted about 30 years, was to Khawar Farid Maneka, who belongs to a politically influential Punjab family. Khan has been incarcerated in the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since September 26 in several cases since he was ousted from power in April last year.