The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Grants Imran Khan’s Appeal in Nine Cases

In a significant legal development, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) accepted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairperson Imran Khan’s plea on Monday, overturning the cancellation of bail by lower courts in nine cases against him. The division bench, led by IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, heard Imran Khan’s application related to three cases linked to the May 9 riots, three involving protests in Islamabad, the Toshakhana case, Section 144 violation, and one attempted murder case. Six of these bail pleas were presented before different district and session courts, while three were before anti-terrorism courts.

The IHC not only reinstated Imran Khan’s bail but also nullified the decisions of various trial courts to cancel it. Moreover, the division bench directed the trial courts to conduct proceedings on Imran Khan’s applications and reevaluate the matter.

The lower courts had revoked Imran Khan’s bail primarily due to his non-appearance in court. Imran Khan had appealed to the IHC, requesting that the trial courts hear the cases based on merit and prevent authorities from arresting him in these cases until a final verdict is reached.

More related: Court summons Imran for cipher case trial on October 4th

In a separate development, the IHC reserved its verdict on the Federal Investigation Agency’s plea to hold in-camera proceedings for Imran Khan’s bail application in the cipher case. The FIA had raised diplomatic concerns, suggesting that sensitive information might be disclosed if the case were heard in an open court. This raised questions about the nature of the case against the former premier, which revolves around the alleged disclosure of a sensitive document.

Imran Khan, who was ousted from the Prime Minister’s Office in April 2022 through a vote of no-confidence, urged IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, through his lawyer Salman Safdar, to expedite the hearing and set a date within a day or two.

The FIA’s counsel, advocate Shah Khawar, made this request shortly before the court was scheduled to hear Imran Khan’s application challenging the rejection of bail by lower courts in nine cases, emphasizing that a trial conducted under the Official Secrets Act should remain confidential.