Imran Khan, the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and former prime minister, has petitioned the Supreme Court for post-arrest bail in the cypher case. He filed the plea through his counsel Salman Safdar, challenging the Islamabad High Court’s decision to continue the cypher case against him, reject his bail requests, and allow further interrogation.
This move comes after the Islamabad High Court denied Imran’s bail requests and the dismissal of the first information report (FIR) related to the cypher case. The court determined that Section 5(1)(a) of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, applied to the PTI chairman, and he was not exempt from the legal process as a former prime minister. The court also stated that Imran, in his capacity as the prime minister, did not have the authority to declassify the diplomatic cypher, which was allegedly in his possession.
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The Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court, Aamer Farooq, ruled that Imran’s petitions were “without merit” and that he had other legal avenues available under the Code of Criminal Procedure. The court emphasized that Imran’s speech at a rally was a political engagement and not part of his duties as prime minister.
Additionally, a special court granted permission for Rawalpindi police to question Imran and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, both held in Adiala jail, regarding cases related to the May 9 riots that followed the former prime minister’s arrest.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) submitted its charge sheet in the cypher case to a special court on September 30, alleging that Imran had unlawfully possessed a diplomatic cypher, violating the Official Secrets Act. PTI leader Qureshi was also accused of facilitating Imran, and his March 27, 2022, speech at a public rally in Islamabad was mentioned, where Imran had displayed a piece of paper claiming it was evidence of an “international conspiracy” to overthrow his government.
