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Cipher case: Shah Mahmood Qureshi likely to be freed from Adiala jail today

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  • Special judge, Qureshi’s lawyer, Bushar Bibi reach Adiala jail.
  • On Dec 22, SC approved PTI leaders’ post-arrest bail in cipher case.
  • Post-arrest bail issued against surety bonds of Rs1 million each.

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice-Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi is likely to be released today after his bail in the cipher case was approved by the Supreme Court last week on Friday. 

In this regard, his lawyer Barrister Taimur Malik has reached the Adiala jail in Rawalpindi with his bail bonds.

Meanwhile, Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain — who is hearing the case for the special court established under the Official Secrets Act 2023 — has arrived at the jail.

Also present at the jail premises is Bushra Bibi, the wife of PTI founder Imran Khan, lawyers Umair Niazi and Rai Muhammad Ali.

The apex court, on December 22, approved Khan and Qureshi’s post-arrest bail in the cipher case against surety bonds of Rs1 million each. The court ruled that the discretion exercised by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in declining bail to the petitioners was exercised perversely.

After examining the material available on record, the court found that there was no sufficient incriminating material available at this stage to show that Khan communicated the information contained in the cipher telegram received from PAREP (Ambassador), Washington, USA, to the public at large with the intention or calculation, directly or indirectly, in the interest or for the benefit of a foreign power, nor the disclosed information related to any of the defence installations or affairs, nor did he disclose any secret official code to the public at large. 

The court, after converting the petitions into an appeal, allowed it and set aside the impugned orders of the IHC.

Imran and Qureshi had filed appeals in the apex court against the IHC orders, issued on Oct 27, 2023 and Nov 8, 2023, whereby the post-arrest bail had been declined to them in case, FIR No 6/2023, registered at Police Station CTW/FIA, Islamabad, for the offences punishable under Sections 5 and 9 of the Official Secrets Act 1923, read with Section 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) 1860. Both Imran and Qureshi are incarcerated at Adiala Jail in the cipher case.

It should be noted that the PTI founder and vice-chairman, on December 13, were indicted in the cipher case again by the special court established under the Official Secrets Act 2023 after the IHC declared their jail trial null and void.

Both politicians have pleaded not guilty to their involvement in the offence related to the alleged misuse of diplomatic cable for political purposes.

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Imran Khan’s bail request in the Toshakhana-II case has had its objections dismissed.

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In the Toshakhana-II case, the Islamabad High Court has dismissed the objections to PTI founder Imran Khan’s bail request.

IHC instructed the registrar’s office to schedule the hearing for the case for Monday.

Imran Khan’s attorneys, Shaheena Shahab, Ayesha Khalid, and others, arrived in court today as IHC Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb heard the case.

The registrar’s objections to the plea were questioned by Justice Aurangzeb. In the Toshakhana-II case, Imran Khan submitted a bail application, according to counsel Ayesha Khalid.

Justice Miangul said that previous rulings in circumstances comparable to this one adhered to the consistency principle. In this instance, the petitioner was a man, he added.

Bushra Bibi was given bail because she was a woman, according to the justice, and an application like this one was denied yesterday.

Given that the case action date was November and the power of attorney was executed in July, Justice Aurangzeb raised a concern about the timing.

Justice requested the help of Advocate Shah Khawar in this case.

When an applicant was held in jail, Shah Khawar retorted that it was standard procedure to obtain signatures on required documents, such as a power of attorney.

Imran Khan’s attorney, Shaheena Shahab, asked the court to send out notices regarding the bail plea. A judge named Aurangzeb said that the law would be observed.

Following arguments, the court dismissed the registrar office’s objections and ordered that the case hearing be scheduled for Monday.

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PTI presents seven nominations to Imran Khan for the judicial commission.

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Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has proposed seven individuals to its founder, Imran Khan, for consideration as founding members of PTI for membership in the next Judicial Commission.

None of the nominated individuals are attorneys; rather, the roster includes four Members of the National Assembly (MNAs) and three senators.

The proposed MNAs are Umar Ayub, Asad Qaiser, Ali Mohammad Khan, and Aamir Dogar, while the senators are Shibli Faraz, Mohsen Aziz, and Aun Abbas Bapi. Sources suggest that the Judicial Commission will include one opposition member from both the National Assembly and the Senate.

The PTI founder will evaluate and endorse two names from the suggested list, which will then be sent to the Speaker for future actions.

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Miller confirmed that Biden’s administration got a letter from a congressman requesting the release of the PTI founder.

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Following his removal as prime minister in 2022, Khan started a protest movement against a coalition of his enemies led by current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Since then, he has been in jail since August 2023 and has been involved in hundreds of cases.

In response to ARY News’ question over the congressmen’s letter during a media briefing in Washington on Monday, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated, “We will respond in due course to the members.”

The United States wants to see Pakistan maintain its democracy, Miller stated.

The release of the PTI founder’s wife and sisters was a result of a meeting between the US Deputy Assistant Secretary and a Pakistani government representative in Islamabad, which was further questioned during the press briefing.

“I won’t be addressing that,” Miller said when asked if the United States was involved in their release. Miller did, however, affirm that the conference included the defense of Pakistan’s basic liberties and rights.

Sixty-two members of the US Congress urged President Joe Biden on October 24 to support the release of Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, and other political prisoners.

The congressmen, who included well-known Muslim members Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, said in their letter that the Biden administration should ask Pakistani authorities to guarantee the safety of PTI founder Imran Khan.

They also underlined that US policy should concentrate on Pakistan’s human rights situation and asked that US ambassadors attend the PTI leader’s incarceration.

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