Pakistan: Mr. Imran Khan, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, has been placed on judicial remand for two weeks on allegations of disclosing state secrets, according to his attorney.
Mr. Khan’s detention has been prolonged until September 13 as part of the investigation into the “cypher” case. This decision came after a special court conducted proceedings at the Attock city jail.
former judicial remand occurred one day after the Islamabad High Court suspended his conviction and three-year prison sentence for corruption charges.
The former prime minister is charged with making public the contents of a confidential cable sent by Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States and using it for political gain.
The “cypher” case revolves around a diplomatic cable that Khan had presented as evidence supporting his claim that he was ousted in April of the previous year due to a US-backed conspiracy supported by the “establishment,” a term often used to refer to Pakistan’s influential military.
Mr. Khan asserts that the cable serves as evidence supporting his claim that the US influenced Pakistan’s army to oust his government. He contends this was because he had visited Russia shortly before its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The US and the Pakistani government, including the military, have dismissed the allegation. In the same case, Mr. Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the vice chairman of Mr. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and a former foreign minister, has also been arrested.
During Mr. Khan’s recent imprisonment, Pakistan’s parliament was dissolved at the request of his successor, Mr. Shehbaz Sharif. A caretaker government was established to oversee national elections.
No election date has been set yet, as the country’s election commission is in the process of redefining constituencies according to the most recent census data.
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