On Tuesday, a court in Pakistan declared that the trial of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in jail, accused of leaking state secrets, was illegal. This means the charges against him and his aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi from October 23 are canceled, and the trial will happen again in an open court.
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The special court had been holding the trial in prison, citing security concerns, since Khan was indicted last month. According to Khan’s lawyer, Naeem Panjutha, the Islamabad High Court declared the notification for the jail trial illegal.
The court order stated that all proceedings conducted since August 29 in the jail trial are void. It emphasized that the trial held in jail did not meet the requirements of an open trial and was conducted in a way that affected its fairness.
The ruling means the prosecution needs to restart the trial, either in open court or in jail, ensuring it follows legal requirements. Khan’s legal team had contested the law ministry’s notification that ordered the trial to be in prison.
The charges against Khan are related to a classified cipher sent to Islamabad by Pakistan’s ambassador in the United States last year, which Khan is accused of making public. Khan, a former cricket star, faced legal challenges even after being ousted from office in 2022. He has been convicted in one corruption case but released on bail. Despite being in jail, he remains popular, and he claims that the various cases against him are politically motivated.
Khan suggests that these legal issues are intended to keep him out of politics, especially as Pakistan approaches the February 8, 2024 elections. The military denies involvement in Khan’s removal, and the upcoming election poses a challenge for former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who recently returned from exile.
