Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan listens to a member...

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan listens to a member of the media during a talk with reporters regarding the current political situation and the ongoing cases against him at his residence in Lahore, Pakistan, on Aug. 3, 2023. A Pakistani court on Monday, Oct. 23, indicted Imran Khan on charges of revealing official secrets after his 2022 ouster from office in another slap to the former prime minister who will likely be unable to run in the upcoming parliamentary elections in late January. Credit: AP/K.M. Chaudary

ISLAMABAD — A Pakistani court ruled Tuesday that the closed-door prison trial of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on charges of revealing state secrets is illegal, his lawyer said.

The ruling by the Islamabad High Court came on a petition filed by Khan, who has demanded an open trial, lawyer Naeem Haider Panjutha said.

It was unclear whether the government would appeal, or if future open court proceedings would take place at the same prison in the garrison city of Rawalpindi or somewhere else. Authorities have insisted Khan was being tried at Adiyala Prison because of threats to his life.

The court's decision came about a month after Khan was indicated for allegedly revealing a secret document. Legal experts say the charges he faces carry a possible death sentence in the event of a conviction.

Khan’s close aide, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who was deputy in his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, is a co-defendant in the case. Both men have denied the charges them during the trial.

The case is related to Khan's comments about and waving of a confidential diplomatic letter at a rally after his ouster in a no-confidence vote in parliament in 2022. He and Qureshi are accused of communicating information in the classified letter to unauthorized people for political gain.

The document — dubbed Cipher — has not been made public by either the government or Khan’s lawyers but was apparently diplomatic correspondence between the Pakistani ambassador to Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad.

Security personnels clear way for Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz...

Security personnels clear way for Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, center, leaves after appearing in a court in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. A federal court in Pakistan's capital restored the appeals of the country's former Prime Minister Sharif against his 2018 conviction in graft cases, less than a week after this Islamic nation's three-time former premier returned home. Credit: AP/W.K. Yousafzai

Khan claimed the document was proof that his ouster was a U.S. conspiracy, allegedly executed by the military and his political opponents, including his successor Shehbaz Sharif. Washington, Pakistan's military and Sharif have denied the claim.

Khan has not appeared in public since August, when he was sentenced to three years for corruption. The Islamabad High Court subsequently suspended that sentence but he remained in custody due to his arrest in the Cipher case.

Tuesday's development came ahead of the parliamentary elections which are to be held on February 8.

According to analysts, Khan's party still could win the most seats, but he is not eligible to run for parliament due to his conviction in the graft case.

Security personnels clear way for Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz...

Security personnels clear way for Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, center, leaves after appearing in a court in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. A federal court in Pakistan's capital restored the appeals of the country's former Prime Minister Sharif against his 2018 conviction in graft cases, less than a week after this Islamic nation's three-time former premier returned home. Credit: AP/W.K. Yousafzai

Also Tuesday, a court in Islamabad briefly heard an appeal from Khan's main political rival, Nawaz Sharif, against his 2018 conviction in a graft case. Sharif, who served as prime minister three times, returned to Pakistan in October, ending four years of self-imposed exile in London mainly to lead his Pakistan Muslim League party in the parliamentary elections.

During his tenure, Khan allowed Sharif to travel abroad to receive medical treatment. But he prolonged his stay in London, saying his doctors would not allow him to return to Pakistan. Sharif returned home only after Khan was arrested and imprisoned.

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