Army in Pakistan ‘wanted ex-leader jailed’

PAKISTAN’S top judge allegedly admitted the army wanted a former prime minister jailed so Imran Khan could take power, according to a supposedly leaked conversation clip that has caused a political storm.

The unverified recording has been seized on by opposition leaders as evidence they were ousted by an army conspiracy, in a country with a long history of political interference by the military.

The audio released by an investigative journalism website claims to show Saqib Nisar, who was chief justice at the time, admit that Nawaz Sharif would have to be punished so that Mr Khan could take power.

A voice, said to be the judge’s, admits in the recording that judgments in Pakistan are dictated by “institutions”, which is a phrase often used to refer to the powerful army and its spy agency.

Mr Sharif, head of the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz party, was ousted in 2017 after the Panama Papers leak revealed his family had extensive assets in the UK. He was later given a sevenyear sentence for corruption, in a case he says was politically motivated because he tried to limit the military’s power.

In the alleged clip, the voice purported to be the judge’s says: “Let me be a little blunt about it. Unfortunately, here it is the institutions who dictate judgments. In this case, we will have to penalise Mian Sahib [Sharif ]. And they say we shall bring Khan Sahib.”

Mr Nisar, who is now retired, has strongly denied the accusations, saying the recording has been fabricated and the voice was not his.