ISLAMABAD: The bail petition filed by Imran Khan in the cipher case was rejected by the Islamabad High Court on Friday. The court ruled that the Official Secrets Act can be applied to Imran Khan’s actions.
Justice Aamer Farooq delivered the verdict on Friday morning, which had been reserved on October 16. The judgment combined the issues of Khan’s bail and the quashing of the First Information Report (FIR) due to the extensive arguments presented in the case.
The decision pointed out that Imran Khan not only received and disclosed the contents of the cipher but also mishandled it, an act he was not authorized to do under section 5 of the Act. It rejected the argument that Khan was merely fulfilling his duties according to the oath of office when he revealed the cipher’s contents, as this revelation occurred during a political rally.
The judgment emphasized that a straightforward reading of the cipher’s contents warranted diplomatic communication, and there was no evidence of a conspiracy.
The IHC decision referred to both Asad Majeed Khan’s account and the Supreme Court ruling in the Qasim Suri case. However, it noted that these observations are tentative and should not prejudice the trial court where the case is currently being heard.
On Thursday, the IHC also dismissed Imran Khan’s petition against holding the trial in jail and ruled that Khan should have the right to a free trial.
Imran Khan, the former prime minister, has been in jail since August 5 when he was arrested shortly after an accountability court in Islamabad convicted him of corrupt practices in the Toshakhana case. He was subsequently arrested on August 29 in the cipher case, which was registered under the Official Secrets Act.
Khan did manage to secure bail in the Toshakhana case but remained in custody due to his arrest in the cipher case. Notably, he has not been physically brought to any court hearings since his incarceration in August, despite facing various cases ranging from corruption to his involvement in the May 9 riot.
Meanwhile, Imran Khan and former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi have already been indicted in the cipher case. Khan is charged with unlawfully retaining and disclosing the contents of a classified cipher authored by Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington, with potential penalties of up to fourteen years in prison or even a death sentence if found guilty.
Imran Khan has expressed concerns that there may be attempts on his life while he is in jail, which he conveyed in a message shared with his family. His sister, Aleema Khan, expressed doubt regarding the impartiality of Pakistani courts and pledged her support for her brother, asserting that the current situation aligns with a preexisting agreement rather than a “London plan.”
