The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday consolidated former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s multiple petitions related to the cipher case.
These petitions aimed at suspending the trial court proceedings and ultimately dismissing the case. The cipher case revolves around a diplomatic document that allegedly disappeared from Imran Khan’s possession, containing a threat from the United States to remove Khan from office.
Imran Khan, the PTI chief, had previously been convicted and sentenced to three years in prison in the Toshakhana graft case on August 5, 2023. Despite the IHC’s suspension of his sentence, Khan remained incarcerated due to his judicial remand in the cipher case.
On September 26, the IHC accepted Imran’s request to transfer him from Attock district jail to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi. Subsequently, on September 30, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) submitted a charge sheet in the Special Court, established under the Official Secrets Act. This document named the former prime minister and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi as the primary accused in the cipher case.
Imran Khan has filed several petitions in the IHC, including one to halt the trial proceedings in the cipher case, another seeking to suspend the Toshakhana verdict, and a third challenging his indictment in the cipher case, scheduled for October 17.
Today, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq considered a separate plea to stay Imran’s trial in the cipher case and merged it with the primary petition seeking the case’s dismissal, scheduling it for a future hearing.
During the hearing, senior lawyer Sardar Latif Khosa, representing Imran, informed the court that the pleas aimed to halt the trial court proceedings and contest the special court’s indictment order. He noted that the matter was already under consideration by the IHC, and a verdict had been reserved. Additionally, he highlighted that the Lahore High Court had issued a stay order in an FIA case.
Khosa expressed concerns about the application of the Official Secrets Act in the case, questioning the alleged compromise of security or leakage of secrecy. He asserted that his client, Imran Khan, is a national hero, now behind bars while claiming his innocence.
Chief Justice Farooq proposed combining the separate plea with the case dismissal petition, to which Khosa agreed, under the condition that it be scheduled before October 17.
In response to Justice Farooq’s inquiry about the significance of October 17, Khosa stated that great unpleasantness was expected, referring to the ongoing trial and impending indictment.
The chief justice assured that he would review the matter and issue an order, confirming that the petitions would be scheduled for a hearing before October 17.
Meanwhile, Imran Khan’s lawyer, Naeem Haider Panjutha, expressed frustration at the delay in today’s bail plea hearing in the cipher case. He noted the hearing’s delayed start and the previous adjournment due to a late beginning.
