In a dramatic development, a Pakistani court has indicted former Prime Minister Imran Khan on charges of revealing official secrets after his ouster from office in 2022. Khan and his close aide, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, will be going on trial this week and could potentially face severe consequences, including a possible death sentence. This latest indictment could also impact Khan's ability to run in parliamentary elections scheduled for January. The charge against Khan relates to his speech and waving of a confidential diplomatic letter during a rally after his removal from office.

The document, known as the Cipher, was allegedly a diplomatic correspondence between the Pakistani ambassador to Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad. Khan claimed that the letter was evidence of a US-backed conspiracy orchestrated by the military and the Pakistani government. However, both US and Pakistani officials denied these claims. Khan's defense lawyers are confident that their client will be acquitted, arguing that he has done nothing wrong. They have also raised objections to the closed-door nature of the trial.

Khan is currently facing over 150 cases, including charges ranging from contempt of court to terrorism and incitement of violence. He was previously sentenced to three years for corruption, but that sentence was suspended by the Islamabad High Court. However, he was subsequently re-arrested in connection with the Cipher case. This latest indictment adds another hurdle for Khan, as he will need to be cleared of corruption charges and have the Cipher case charges dropped or be acquitted before being eligible to run in the upcoming elections. His lawyer has claimed that Khan is being denied a fair trial, while his political rival, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has recently returned to Pakistan after four years of self-imposed exile in London.

Sharif, who has been granted protection from arrest by a federal court, has announced his forgiveness towards those who caused him hardship. His Pakistan Muslim League party is expected to face tough competition from Khan's popular Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party in the January elections. In a separate development, Pakistan's Supreme Court has ruled that trials of civilians by military courts are against the law.

While this ruling is unlikely to impact Khan's cases, it brings relief to suspects involved in the violence that followed Khan's arrest in May. The decision ensures that their cases will be heard by regular courts rather than military tribunals. Khan, a former cricket star turned Islamist politician, has faced numerous legal battles since his time in office ended. The future ahead looks challenging for him as he navigates these legal hurdles and potential consequences.