The Islamabad High Court on Friday rejected the petitions filed by former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan seeking bail and dismissal of the cipher case registered against him under the Official Secrets Act, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Friday
Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Aamer Farooq announced the verdict reserved on October 16.
During yesterday’s hearing, the Special Prosecutor of the FIA took the position in the court that this was a case in which the crime was committed and the accused had also admitted it.
The prosecutor said that under the Official Secrets Act, the secret document was made public. The punishment for the crime is 14 years imprisonment or the death penalty, he told the court.
Advocate Latif Khosa said in his arguments that the PTI chairman did not show any cipher to the public but had symbolically waved a paper.
The FIA prosecutor told the court that the prime minister does not enjoy immunity under Article 248 of the Constitution if he makes public a secret document.
IHC issues written order
The written verdict issued by the IHC declared that both petitions as “without merit” and were “accordingly dismissed”.
“It is clarified that any observations, made hereinabove, are tentative in nature and shall not prejudice learned trial court during the trial,” the judgement emphasised.
On the matter of the plea seeking dismissal of the case, it stated that the petitioner had the “efficacious and alternate remedy by way of moving an appropriate application” under section 249-A (power of magistrate to acquit accused at any stage) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
“Moreover, the petitioner is co-accused in the case and even if the arguments advanced for quashment of FIR on his behalf are accepted, FIR cannot be quashed in as much as there are other co-accused and there cannot be a partial quashing of FIR,” the verdict said referring to the fact that the FIR had named multiple people named.
Referring to a previous Supreme Court verdict, the IHC said it showed that “contents of cipher were such that they only called for demarche and not any further strict action, as there was no conspiracy of any kind”.
Addressing the arguments made in the pleas, the judgment said Imran, “when addressed the public gathering, was not doing so pursuant to the performance of his duties as prime minister, rather it was a political engagement”.
Noting that the punishment for the offence committed under section 5(1)(a) (wrongful communication, etc of information) of the Official Secrets Act was “death or imprisonment up to fourteen years”, the IHC said it attracted the prohibitory clause of section 497 (when bail may be taken in ease of non-boilable offence) of the CrPC and “there does not exist any ground for further inquiry”.
The IHC stated, “The case law cited by the petitioner for grant of bail in the facts and circumstances is not relevant in as much as undoubtedly the evidence is all documentary but according to the prosecution, the copy of cipher is still in custody of the petitioner and […] where allegations are serious and prima facie link the accused with the commission of the offence, bail is to be denied in case of Official Secrets Act, 1923.”
Earlier on Thursday, the IHC rejected PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s petition challenging his indictment in the cipher case. IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq disposed of the former premier’s plea but directed that Imran be provided a “fair trial”.
The FIA submitted a charge sheet to the special court set up under the Official Secrets Act on Sept 30 accusing former prime minister Imran Khan and foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi as the principal accused in the case. The FIA requested the special court judge, Abul Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain to hold trial of the PTI leaders and to punish them.
On Monday, both the PTI leaders were indicted in the case. However, the duo pleaded not guilty, and subsequently, the judge summoned the witnesses on Oct 27 and asked the prosecution to place evidence to substantiate the allegations.
Special court adjourns cipher case hearing
The hearing of the cipher case was adjourned till Tuesday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Friday.
A special court in Islamabad conducted the cipher case proceedings on Friday to record the statements of the prosecution witnesses.
But the defence lawyers requested the special court not to record the statements of the witnesses as their petitions for bail and case dismissal were already in the high court. They said that if the order of the high court was not prohibited then the statements of the prosecution witnesses could be recorded at the next hearing.
The prosecutor informed the media that the statements of the witnesses could not be recorded today.
Reporters Farzana Siddique and Irshad Qureshi