Cipher Case: Islamabad Court Indicted Imran Khan and SM Qureshi

A special court in Islamabad, Pakistan, indicted former Prime Minister Imran Khan and ex-Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday.

They were charged with alleged leaking of a diplomatic cable and violating the country’s secret laws.

Imran Khan, aged 71, was arrested in August following a case against him for supposedly violating the Official Secrets Act by disclosing a secret diplomatic cable sent by the country’s embassy in Washington in March of the previous year. The former Foreign Minister Qureshi, aged 67, was also indicted along with Khan.

Khan’s lawyer, Umair Niazi, stated that his client denied the crime and that they planned to challenge the court’s order in the high court. Imran Khan, also the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, had utilized the document to construct a narrative claiming his government was ousted due to a foreign conspiracy.

The case hearing was conducted at the Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, presided over by special court judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain. Following the indictment, the court adjourned the hearing until October 27, when the formal trial is set to begin.

FIA Special Prosecutor Shah Khawar informed the media that since the hearing was meant for indictment, it was read out in open court. Imran Khan had questioned the charges against him and suggested that a conspiracy was hatched against him, resulting in his government’s downfall. He asserted that there were no minutes of the meeting in question and claimed to be already aware of the “London plan,” aimed at undermining the PTI.

Advocate Usman Riaz Gul, a member of Imran’s legal team, stated they informed the court that the suspects could not be indicted until the complete statement of witnesses and case memo were received. The court dismissed their objections and proceeded to indict Imran and Qureshi.

The court also approved Imran Khan’s request for a bicycle for exercise in Adiala Jail.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) presented the charge sheet against Khan and Qureshi on September 30, and they signed its copies. The court had initially planned to indict Khan on October 17 but delayed it due to objections from Khan’s lawyers who claimed that he was not provided with copies of the charge sheet.

Imran Khan has been in jail for the cipher case since the Islamabad High Court granted him bail in the Toshakhana case on August 29. Since his ouster from power in April the previous year, more than 150 cases have been registered against him.