An MP is facing a jury trial after denying a 2008 sexual assault.
Imran Ahmad Khan, who was elected for the Conservatives in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, allegedly groped a boy aged 15.
Khan, 48, appeared today at the Old Bailey in London from his lawyers’ office via video link.
He stands charged with a single count of sexual assault against the then teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in Staffordshire in January 2008.
The charge put to him stated: ‘You intentionally touched (the complainant), the circumstances being that the touching was sexual, (he) did not consent to it, and you did not reasonably believe that (he) consented.’
Dressed in a dark three-piece suit, white shirt, and tie, Khan, sat next to his solicitor, spoke to confirm his name before pleading not guilty.
The MP has previously issued a denial to the allegation ‘in the strongest terms’.
Judge Mark Lucraft QC said the trial will be held before judge Mrs Justice McGowan, although a date has not yet been set.
Khan, who is on unconditional bail, is next expected in court next month for a further case management hearing.
The Conservatives have previously said the whip had been suspended from Khan, and he now sits as an independent in the Commons.
He helped Boris Johnson win a large Commons majority in December 2019 by taking Wakefield in the so-called ‘red wall’ that formed Labour’s heartlands in the Midlands and the north of England.
Khan last tweeted in June on the day of his last court appearance over the alleged sexual assault.
He wrote: ”This matter is deeply distressing to me and I, of course, take it extremely seriously.
‘To be accused of doing something I did not do is shocking, destabilising and traumatic. I am innocent.’
MORE : Conservative Party apologises for saying MP was ‘openly gay’
MORE : Tory MP Imran Ahmad Khan faces trial for alleged sexual assault of boy, 15
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.