SC to take up Imran’s bail plea on 22nd

Special court bans cypher case trial reporting

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court will take up next week—on December 22—the post arrest bail applications of former prime minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in a case about alleged misuse of a classified diplomatic cipher during the tail end of the PTI’s rule.

According to a cause list published on Thursday, SC’s Senior Puisne Judge Sardar Tariq Masood will lead a three-member bench—also comprising Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Athar Minallah—that will hear the PTI’s leaders’ pleas.
Interestingly, the three-member bench that had admitted Imran’s bail plea on November 22 and issued notices to respondents consisted of Justice Masood, Justice Ayesha A Malik and Justice Yahya Afridi.

However, the bench notified on Thursday includes Justice Shah and Justice Minallah as the previous members of the bench have gone on winter vacations, sources said.

Imran Khan, the PTI’s founder, had approached the apex court for a bail relief in the case after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) rejected his post arrest bail application on October 27.

Interestingly, the special court holding trial of Imran and Qureshi in the cipher case on Thursday accepted the prosecution’s—the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA)—request to hold the trial “in camera”.

In a written order, the judge noted that it is imperative that the members of the public “are excluded at any moment from the proceedings in the instant trial as per request of prosecution.”

The court stated that family members of the accused shall be allowed to attend the proceedings subject to the condition that they shall not publish or get published any evidence given or statement made during the proceedings.

“Furthermore, the proceedings shall not be published in any manner whatsoever including on print, electronic and social media.
“The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) are accordingly directed to ensure the aforesaid directions.”  The court warned that any violator of the order will be booked and tried under the Official Secrets Act, 1923.

“Let a copy of this order be sent to Perma and the PTA for their information and for the purpose of complying [with] the orders of this court,” it added.

On March 27, 2022, ahead of a vote of no-confidence that resulted in his ouster, former premier Imran had waved a piece of paper, allegedly a diplomatic cipher, at a public gathering in Islamabad, claiming it was evidence of an “international conspiracy” to topple his government.

The FIA initiated its probe into the so-called “cipher-gate” on July 19, 2023, after the last PML-N-led coalition government announced an official inquiry against the former PM and his close associates for violating the Official Secrets Act, 1923.

PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi was arrested by the FIA on August 19. The agency arrested Imran—who was already in jail in connection with the gift repository case—on August 29.

Initially, the special court formed exclusively to hear cases registered under the Official Secrets Act, 1923 conducted the cipher case trial inside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail where both Imran and Qureshi are currently detained.

However, the IHC on November 21 declared as null and void the case proceedings conducted in jail and ordered the special court judge, Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain, to restart the trial in an open court.

After the IHC order, the trial court allowed some media persons and the family members of the accused to attend proceedings inside the prison. The court re-indicted Imran and Qureshi on December 13.

However, on Thursday the special court accepted the prosecution’s—the FIA’s—request to hold the cipher case trial of Imran and Qureshi in camera.