Imran Khan (centre) arrives to appear at a court in Islamabad. File / AP

The 71-year-old former cricket star has been at the centre of a political crisis since his ouster from office in 2022. Imran won the last general election in 2018, a victory his opponents say he achieved with the help of the military, which often plays an outsized role in making and breaking Pakistan governments.

Banning coverage of the trial could taint the coming vote under a caretaker government, which the country's election commission says is favouring Imran Khan's opponents.

The charges against Imran are related to a classified cable sent by Pakistan's ambassador in Washington last year. ̛Imran is accused of making the cable public, which is punishable under the Official Secrets Act up to 10 years in prison.

The decision to hold a closed-door trial and the media ban on its proceedings came in the opening of the trial in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, according to a court order issued late on Thursday and reviewed by Reuters.

The court order, which was copied to Pakistan's media regulator and telecom authorities, warned of "serious consequences" — also under the Official Secrets Act — in case of any violation of the ban on coverage.

The court has allowed the families of Imran Khan and his co-accused former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to attend the trial on condition they not disclose the proceedings on any platform.

Human rights groups say such blanket restrictions on media coverage do not fulfil the requirements of a fair trial.

"The case is of public importance and declaring trial of a popular leader and ex-premier in-camera is depriving people their right to know," said Mazhar Abbas, a Pakistani media activist, in a WhatsApp message to Reuters.

Imran Khan has been in jail since he was convicted and sentenced to three years on corruption charges on Aug. 5.

Reuters