Imran Khan, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, has been placed under judicial remand for a period of two weeks on charges of leaking state secrets, as confirmed by his lawyer.
The decision was made in connection with the “cypher” case, where Khan is accused of making public the contents of a confidential cable sent by Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States and using it for political advantage.
The proceedings were conducted at a special court on the premises of Attock city jail on Wednesday, extending Khan’s custody until September 13 for further investigation.
This development comes a day after the Islamabad High Court suspended Khan’s conviction and three-year jail sentence on corruption charges.
While Khan’s legal team has filed a bail petition, his lawyer Salman Safdar stated that the appeal challenges the jail trial itself, demanding that the case be heard in an open court rather than behind closed doors.
Also Read: Islamabad High Court Suspends Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Corruption Conviction
The “cypher” case revolves around a diplomatic cable that Khan had presented as evidence to support his claim that he was removed from office in April of the previous year due to a US-backed conspiracy involving the “establishment,” a term often used to refer to Pakistan’s influential military.
Khan alleges that the cable proves his ousting was orchestrated by the US at the request of Pakistan’s military, prompted by his visit to Russia shortly before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both the US and the Pakistani government have denied these allegations.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the vice chairman of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and a former foreign minister, has also been arrested in connection with the same “cypher” case.
While Khan’s imprisonment led to the dissolution of Pakistan’s parliament and the formation of a caretaker government for impending national elections, no official date has been announced for the polls.
Khan, a former international cricketer and a highly popular politician in Pakistan, has been entangled in over 100 legal cases that he contends are designed to hinder his electoral prospects. Following his conviction for corruption, the election commission imposed a five-year ban on Khan from participating in elections.
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