Former Pakistani Prime Minister Khan has been awarded bail by anti-terrorist court: party

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was ordered on bail Thursday on charges under the country’s anti-terrorism law, a party official said, freeing him to continue his nationwide rallies for early elections.

Khan’s court appearance is the latest turning point in a months-long political infighting that began when he was ousted by a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly in April.

But the former cricket star retains widespread support and is staging mass rallies against the establishment and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government, which was imposed on Pakistan by a “conspiracy” involving the United States.

A court ruling was not immediately available, but Fawad Chaudhry – a former information minister and senior party official – said Khan had been granted “provisional bail” until September 1.

“We are not satisfied with this decision. Instead, the court should have dropped the case,” he said

The political crisis comes as officials struggle to cope with record-high monsoon rains that have inundated large parts of the country.

Figures from the national disaster agency on Thursday showed that the floods had killed 903 people since June and forced over 180,000 to flee their rural homes.

The economy is also in freefall, with the country at risk of defaulting on foreign loans unless the International Monetary Fund approves the resumption of a $6 billion bailout next week, as expected.

Khan and other senior officials of his Pakistani Tehreek-e-Insaf Party (PTI) have faced a range of charges since falling from power.

The country has a long history of rulers using the police and courts to repress their political opponents, and Prime Minister Sharif has filed multiple pending cases against him while in opposition.

The latest charges against Khan stem from comments he made at a weekend rally criticizing a judge responsible for keeping a PTI officer in police custody after party leaders said he was tortured.

Khan’s main goal is early parliamentary elections – the next ones must be held before October next year – but the government has shown no signs of going to the polls.

Khan came to power in 2018 thanks to an electorate weary of the dynastic politics of the country’s two main parties and vowing to eradicate decades of entrenched corruption and nepotism.

But under his rule, the country’s economy faltered and the IMF suspended the lending program that the new government has only just gotten back on track.

Khan also lost military support.

Over the weekend, Pakistan’s media regulator banned TV channels from broadcasting live addresses of Khan, saying he was spreading hate speech.

“His provocative statements against state institutions and officials … are likely to disturb public peace and tranquility,” Pakistan’s electronic media regulator said.