LHC to hear plea against Toshakhana ruling from Jan 12

Special court issues release order for Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD/ LAHORE:

The petitions filed against the disqualification of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder chairman Imran Khan in the Toshakhana case have been fixed for hearing by the Lahore High Court for January 12.

According to the details, the LHC has fixed the petitions filed by Imran Khan against disqualification in the Toshakhana case.

On the request of Imran Khan, a 5-member larger bench headed by Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan will hear from January 12.

Other members of the bench will include Justice Shams Mehmood, Justice Shahid Karim, Justice Shehram Sarwar Chaudhry and Justice Jawad Hasan.

It should be noted that the founder chairman of PTI has challenged the decision of disqualification in the Toshakhana case in the Lahore High Court through his lawyers.

Read also: Imran challenges IHC rejection in Toshakhana case

Meanwhile, in a related development, a special court has initiated the release procedures for PTI leader Imran Khan following the confirmation of his bail by the Supreme Court in the Official Secrets Act case, commonly known as the cypher case.

Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain, presiding over the special court, issued the release orders after the submission of Imran Khan's bail from the top court and the presentation of surety bonds.

However, it is pertinent to note that despite securing bail, the PTI's founding chairman will continue to remain incarcerated in Adiala Jail. This is due to his involvement in the Toshakhana case, concerning allegations related to a 190 million pound case.

The special court, established under the Officials Secret Act 1923, on December 14 accepted the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) plea, seeking an in-camera trial of the former premier and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. The trials have been taking place at Adiala jail.

The cypher

The case originated from Imran's public display of a paper during a rally in Islamabad on March 27, 2022, claiming it as evidence of an "international conspiracy" before a no-confidence vote led to his government's ouster.

The FIA initiated its probe into the so-called “cypher-gate” on July 19, 2023, after the previous coalition government announced an official inquiry against Imran and his close associates for violating the OSA.

Imran was arrested on August 5, following his conviction in the Toshakhana case by a local court of Islamabad. Later, he was also arrested in the cypher case on August 29.

As per the challan papers, both Imran and Qureshi, the former foreign minister, were charged under sections 5 and 9 of the OSA. These provisions entail the possibility of the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Previously, the cypher trial had started inside the Adiala Jail but an IHC division bench later annulled all those proceedings, ordering a fresh open court trial.