Pervez Choudhry: Must wear tag

Pervez Choudhry (Tory)

Pervez Choudhry, of Tuns Lane, Slough, had married his second wife in Pakistan but was still legally married to his first "arranged" wife.

Choudhry, 54, admitted bigamy at a previous hearing.

He was given a community order with a nighttime curfew, ordered to pay £5,500 to his second wife and fined £750.

Wheelchair-bound Choudhry married his first wife in 1986 and the pair had three children, the court heard.

He said this was an arranged marriage after his family had decided he would wed his first cousin when he was aged 11.

They separated in 2007 but remained legally married, it was heard.

In October 2008 he met his second wife Dr Zabina Shahian but "untruthfully" told her he had been legally divorced, Judge Ian Grainger said.

Two months later the pair married in Pakistan, but she left him over concerns his first marriage may not have legally ended and hired a private detective to investigate.

Choudhry, who vowed to take his case to the Court of Appeal, claimed the religious ceremony in Pakistan was not recognised under UK law.

He told BBC News after the hearing: "I had no intention of deceiving anybody. I was simply trying to create a family unit."

His second wife Dr Shahian said: "I was very devastated [when I found out he was still married].

"My life has been at a standstill. When I met him I took him at face value."

Choudhry defected to the Tories in 2009 after being elected as the Labour candidate for Central Ward.

He was arrested and charged with one count of bigamy in August 2010.

He was suspended from the Conservative Party pending the investigation and stood as an independent, but lost his seat at the election earlier this month.

Source

Pervez Choudhry - Bigamy

Pervez Choudry (Tory at time of the charge)

The former leader of the Conservative party on Slough Borough Council has pleaded guilty to bigamy.

Councillor Pervez Choudhry, of Tuns Lane, Slough, was arrested and charged with one count of bigamy in August 2010.

The 53-year-old defected to the Tories in 2009 after being elected as the Labour candidate for Central Ward, but is now an independent councillor.

Mr Choudhry will be sentenced at Reading Crown Court on Friday 18 May.

His term of office runs until 3 May.

Mr Choudry said he was unable to comment because it was a "sub judice matter" but that "this case has no bearing or will have no bearing on my standing as a councillor".

Slough Borough Council said it was a "private matter".

Source

Conservative Councillor - Bigamy

Councillor Pervez Choudhry, 52, was arrested on Monday and later released on bail.

Choudhry, who was originally elected as a Labour candidate for the Central Ward but later defected to the Tories, is due to appear at Maidenhead Magistrates' Court next Monday.
Peter Dale-Gough, the acting leader of the Conservative group on Slough Borough Council, said Choudhry had told him that he took part in a religious ceremony to his first wife but never went through with the civil ceremony and was therefore not married by law.

His second wife, a GP who was said to be about 10 years his junior, lives and works in Birmingham. He was said to have met her while using an online dating site and married her in Pakistan.

She was thought to have left Choudhury on learning that his previous marriage may not have legally ended.

Choudhry, of Slough, has vowed to clear his name, after agreeing to stand down as the Conservatives' leader.

He said: "I can't comment on the context of the case but I can say without any hesitation that I have done nothing illegal and I'm vigorously going to defend that.We have decided that I am going to step down and retake my responsibilities when I clear my name."

Last summer it was reported that Choudhry had been lucky to escape a suicide bomb attack while on a humanitarian mission in Pakistan.

He told the Local Berkshire newspaper he felt like he had "cheated death" after leaving his flat in Islamabad shortly before a bomb was set off at a building 15 metres away.

He said at the time: "If I had been there a few hours more I hate to think what could have happened. I feel like I've cheated death and am so grateful to my Lord for every day I have."

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "A 52-year-old man has been charged with one count of bigamy. He was charged on Monday.

"Pervez Choudhry of Tuns Lane, Slough, has been bailed to appear before Maidenhead Magistrates' Court on the ninth of August."

Slough Borough Council delined to comment, saying it was a "private matter".

Source