PTI Chairman Imran Khan has approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to seek post-arrest bail in the cipher case. Imran Khan is currently in custody at Attock jail. This move comes after his earlier plea for bail was rejected by the special court handling cases under the Official Secrets Act.
The cipher case revolves around a missing diplomatic document, which was allegedly in Imran Khan’s possession. The PTI claims that the document contained a threat from the United States to remove Imran from power. Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is also involved in the case, while the involvement of PTI leader Asad Umar and former principal secretary Azam Khan is yet to be determined.
While Umar was granted pre-arrest bail, Imran and Qureshi were denied bail and their judicial remand will be completed on September 26. The State and Interior Ministry Secretary Yousuf Naseem Khokar are respondents in the case.
In the petition submitted to the IHC, Imran’s legal team requested post-arrest bail until the cipher case is finally disposed of. The plea argued that there are nearly 200 criminal cases filed against Imran Khan, with around 40 of them related to charges of corruption, murder, sedition, mutiny, foreign funding, NAB reference, and Toshakhana reference.
The petition also alleged that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) acted according to the instructions of the previous interior ministry. It claimed that the Special Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain overlooked the fact that the case was not registered by the foreign ministry.
According to the plea, Imran and Qureshi’s arrests under the Secrets Act are unprecedented, citing past judgments that condemn immediate arrests. The petition argued that the Secrets Act was originally meant to hold members of the armed forces accountable for violations and breaches of the law, and it does not apply to the cipher case.
The petition accused former interior minister Rana Sanaullah and the FIA of making contradictory statements, stating that the original cipher document is securely held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It further claimed that the acts of the respondents show malice, hostility, and vindictive motives.
The plea emphasized that Imran Khan is willing to provide reasonable surety to the court and undertake not to abscond or tamper with prosecution witnesses. It also highlighted Imran’s integrity and philanthropic contributions.
The petition pointed out that Imran’s mandate and growing popularity pose a threat to established political forces, and state machinery is being misused for political victimization and score-settling.
The IHC Chief Justice Amir Farooq has accepted the petition and fixed it for a hearing on Monday.
About the Cipher Case:
The FIR (First Information Report) states that Imran Khan and Qureshi have been charged under the Official Secrets Act, Pakistan Penal Code, and accused of wrongful communication/use of official secret information and illegal retention of a cipher telegram. The roles of other associates, including Muhammad Azam Khan and Asad Umar, would be determined during the investigation.
The FIR alleges that Imran and Qureshi communicated the information from a secret classified document to unauthorized individuals by distorting facts for personal gain, thereby jeopardizing state security. It claims that they conspired during a clandestine meeting to misuse the contents of the cipher document.
The FIR also states that Imran instructed Azam Khan to manipulate the contents of the cipher message for his own interests, and he deliberately kept the numbered and accountable copy of the cipher telegram, which should have been returned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The FIR concludes that the accused Imran still possesses the cipher telegram, which is classified as an official secret document.