Good morning. Less than two years ago, Imran Khan was prime minister of Pakistan. Today, he sits in a Rawalpindi jail, facing 14 years in prison on corruption charges alongside his wife Bushra Bibi. In the general election on 8 February, three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif is expected to secure victory with the help of Pakistan’s powerful military leadership. Until two weeks ago, he was banned from political office for life.
That reversal is emblematic of Pakistan’s troubled democratic history. Khan, now 71, who once had the backing of the army himself, remains the most popular politician in the country; his sentencing alongside persistent claims of election interference casts serious doubt on the credibility of next week’s vote.
