Will Imran Khan be able to contest Pakistan’s upcoming elections?

Concerns are mounting in Pakistan over Imran Khan’s eligibility to contest an upcoming general election after he was arrested for the second time this year.

The 70-year-old former international cricketer was swiftly taken into custody on Saturday from his home in Lahore after a sessions court sentenced him to three years in jail for illegally selling state gifts during his tenure as prime minister from 2018 to 2022.

The conviction – even by a local sessions court – means Mr Khan will not be able to take part in any elections for the next five years as he will remain ineligible for public office. Mr Khan, who has denied any wrongdoing, faces more than 170 other cases.

Sayed Zulfi Bukhari, a member of Mr Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, told The Independent that he stands disqualified from fighting elections as of now, but the leadership is confident of a reversal as they are filing an appeal.

“He is [convicted] from the session court but he has an appeal in the high court and after that in the Supreme Court, which we are very confident that this decision will be reversed because it’s a very, very frivolous decision given by a very junior court,” he said.

“And there’s no way that a five-year disqualification or any disqualification will stand in those courts.”

His legal team is confident that there is “absolutely no way that this case can stand”.

“The court declared Imran Khan as guilty in a judgment, which is lacking witnesses,” said Naeem Haider Panjhuta, Mr Khan’s spokesperson on legal affairs.

When Mr Khan was arrested in May, supporters staged massive street protests and assaults on state-owned assets and the military establishment.

But the response after this arrest has largely been muted.

Police said only a few of Mr Khan’s supporters came out on the streets of Peshawar city, a stronghold for the PTI party.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said he will dissolve parliament on 9 August, just days before his term expires at the end of the week.

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“I will dissolve my government and the National Assembly on August 9,” he told a rally in Punjab. “After that an interim government will take over and elections will be held.”

The caretaker government will be expected to hold elections in a maximum time span of three months.

Mr Sharif’s statement comes amid growing speculation over his administration delaying federal and provincial elections until next year after hinting at the need for new census data and new constituency boundaries.

And analysts and experts said it could take around four months to complete the census and undertake delimitation exercises. That means elections could be delayed by several months from the November deadline.

It has left Mr Bukhari to consider how long an interim government may administer Pakistan.

“It could very well be that the caretaker government is prolonged,” he told The Independent . “I think going into an election at the moment will be a suicide for any government because Imran Khan, even when he is sitting in jail, is by far the most popular leader.”

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This time, Mr Khan was taken to Attock prison – a far cry from the guesthouse on a police compound in Islamabad that he was taken to in May.

At that time, he was allowed visitors and meetings with party colleagues.

But on this occasion, Mr Khan’s legal team has alleged his lawyers and family members are not being allowed to meet him.

Located in the eastern Punjab province, Attock is notorious for its harsh conditions and its inmates that include convicted militants.

Mr Khan’s team said he has been put in a “C-class” jail – the lowest classification given to convicts on death row.

Political prisoners such as Mr Khan would normally be allocated an “A-class” cell with better facilities, including a television, newspapers and books, said Mr Panjhuta, who also said his team has appealed for better conditions for him.

“We fear he’s been treated very inhumanely. He is effectively in solitary confinement for the last two days in a six by eight cell,” Mr Bukhari said.

Security measures around the prison were escalated even further. In addition to armed guards in watchtowers, authorities have installed barriers and closed roads to prevent public access.

They have also advised local residents against permitting media personnel on their rooftops to prevent the dissemination of unauthorised photos and videos.

Tauseef Ahmed Khan, a Karachi-based analyst, said the situation was difficult for Mr Khan but not his political endgame.

“It all depends on his courage and patience,” he said. “If he lacks both, it is simple and the end of the game for him. But otherwise he can come out as a great leader if he can bear the hardship of prison for a few years.”

Meanwhile, Mr Sharif is using public addresses and rallies to pitch for his older brother Nawaz Sharif, another ex-PM, and said he will become Pakistan’s new leader if his PML-N party wins the elections.

The elder Mr Sharif has been living in self-exile in London since 2019 but is widely expected to return to contest elections.