For a man staring down the barrel of a 10-year jail sentence, Imran Khan was oddly nonchalant in court last Tuesday.
The case heard one of more than 180 separate charges Khan, 71, currently faces and that have rendered a return to power nigh impossible for Pakistan’s most popular politician.
He was back in court on Thursday on separate corruption charges related to the transfer of land for a charitable university he founded.
But few in Pakistan are laughing as the nuclear-armed nation of 240 million stumbles towards general elections on Feb. 8.
Read More: Pakistan Can Keep Imran Khan Out of Power, but It Can’t Keep His Popularity Down.
“And there will be riots all over Pakistan that it can barely endure because of the severe economic crisis.”.
“[But] Washington voicing concern would have given Pakistan’s military establishment pause, and perhaps softened the extent of the crackdown. »