ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Law and Justice on Tuesday issued a notification for the jail trial of former premier and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chair­man Imran Khan and ex-minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the cipher case.

The notification cited the request of Judge Special Court (Official Secrets Act) and stated that the “Law and Justice Division has ‘No Objection’ to the jail trial of the accused in which he is confined, under the Official Secrets Act.”

It stated that the jail trial would continue “till his (Imran’s) security clearance by the quarters concerned (Interior Division)”.

A day earlier, Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain directed the Adiala jail superintendent to produce Mr Khan and Qureshi before the court in connection with proceedings of the cipher case.

Party rejects move by law ministry, seeks an open hearing

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Sept 30 submitted a challan before the court in which the investigation agency reportedly declared both leaders as the principal accused in a case registered under sections 5 and 9 of the Official Secrets Act for disclosing the contents of a classified diplomatic cable and misplacing the same.

The agency cited 27 witnesses in the challan. The star witness Azam Khan has already testified before the investigation agency against Mr Khan. Azam Khan reportedly stated that Mr Khan used the confidential document to divert the public’s attention from the no-confidence motion he was facing as the prime minister at the time.

The statement further alleged that the PTI chairman told Azam Khan that he would display the cipher to the public and “twist the narrative that a foreign conspiracy was being hatched in collusion with local partners and play the victim card”.

PTI demands open hearing

On the other hand, PTI rejected the law ministry’s notification to hold the party chairman’s trial in Adiala jail in the cipher case, insisting that the case be heard in an open court.

A PTI spokesperson said that the notification for holding a jail trial was a sheer violation of fair trial, which would not be acceptable come what may. He pointed out that the “fabricated and fake” cipher case was being conducted in a special manner.

The PTI spokesman highlighted the need that the jail trial notification should be withdrawn immediately and the case against the party leadership be heard in an open court.

He urged the chief justice of Pakistan to take notice of the attempts to make Mr Khan and Mr Qureshi a target of political retribution through the court by depriving them of the fundamental constitutional right to a fair trial.

Bail plea dismissal challenged

Meanwhile, Mr Khan filed a petition before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) against the dismissal of the bail in a corruption case.

The PTI chairman stated that the accountability court dismissed the bail petition due to his absence, which was neither willful nor intentional as he was behind bars since his conviction in Toshakhana case.

It requested the court to set aside the decision of the accountability court and sought the release of Mr Khan till the decision on the petition.

Published in Dawn, October 4th, 2023