As the Islamabad High Court suspended Former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan’s conviction on corruption charges, Khan has been re-arrested and sent to judicial remand for two weeks on charges of leaking state secrets.
His lawyer said Khan’s custody was extended till September 13 to investigate him in the so-called “cypher” case after a special court held the proceedings on the jail premises in Attock city on Wednesday.
The “cypher” case relates to a diplomatic cable that Khan had touted as proof that he was removed in April last year as part of a US conspiracy backed by the “establishment” – a euphemism for Pakistan’s powerful military.
Khan alleges the cable proves his removal was at the behest of the US which he said pressed Pakistan’s army to topple his government because he had visited Russia shortly before its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The US and the Pakistani government and military have rejected the allegation.
The vice chairman of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, also a former foreign minister, has also been arrested in the same case.
A former international cricketer and Pakistan’s most popular politician, Khan has been embroiled in more than 100 cases after being ousted from power.
He argues that these cases are designed to keep him from winning the upcoming elections.