Pakistan court drops contempt case against former PM Imran Khan

Islamabad: A Pakistani court on Monday accepted an apology tendered by former prime minister Imran Khan and dropped a contempt of court case against him, his defence lawyer said, a ruling that ease the threat to him of disqualification from politics. The Islamabad High Court had deferred Khan's indictment over the contempt case after he apologised to the court in person late last month.

A convicted politician is liable to be disqualified from contesting elections and holding a public office for at least five



years under Pakistani law. The charges were related to a speech by Khan in which he was accused of threatening police and judicial officers after one of his close aides was denied bail in a sedition case.

Khan and his legal team subsequently maintained that his remarks did not amount to a threat. The cricketer turned politician has faced a spate of legal cases since his ouster in a confidence vote in April by a united opposition led by his successor, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.