<\/p>\n
In a boost for PTI, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday declared as null and void the proceedings of party chief Imran Khan\u2019s trial conducted in jail in the cipher case.<\/p>\n
As a result, Imran and his aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi\u2019s Oct 23 indictments in the case also stand null and void, and the trial will be conducted again in open court.<\/p>\n
The verdict, which was reserved earlier in the day, was issued on an intra-court appeal filed by Imran against a single-member bench\u2019s decision<\/a> approving his jail trial in the cipher case<\/a>.<\/p>\n It must be noted that on August 29, the IHC had suspended<\/a> the PTI chief\u2019s sentence in the Toshakhana case, but a special court established under the Official Secrets Act had directed jail authorities to keep Imran in \u201cjudicial lockup\u201d in the cipher case.<\/p>\n A notification issued by the law ministry the same day had stated that the Law and Justice Division had \u201cno objection\u201d to Imran\u2019s trial in the cipher case being held at Attock jail. In September, Imran was shifted<\/a> to Adiala jail.<\/p>\n In the verdict, an IHC division bench, comprising Justice Mian\u00adgul Hassan Aur\u00adangzeb and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, declared Imran\u2019s intra-court appeal maintainable.<\/p>\n The short order said that the notification issued by the law ministry on August 29 was declared to be \u201cwithout lawful authority and no legal effect for want of an order by the appropriate government and fulfillment of requirements provided in Section 352 of the CrPC as well as Rule 3 in Part-A of Chapter-1 in Volume-III of the Rules and Orders of the Lahore High Court.\u201d<\/p>\n Further, the order said that the \u201cdesignation<\/a> of the Special Court (Anti-Terrorism-I) Islamabad, to try cases reported under the Official Secrets Act, 1923 through notification dated 27.06.2023 issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice is valid and lawful.\u201d<\/p>\n The order said that there was no provision in the Code of Criminal Procedure which compelled the magistrate to hold court in a usual courtroom.<\/p>\n \u201cIn exceptional circumstances and where it is conducive to justice, a trial can be conducted in jail in a manner that fulfills the requirements of an open trial or a trial in-camera provided it is in accordance with the procedure provided by law,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n Further, notifications issued by the law ministry regarding Imran\u2019s jail trial on September 12, September 25, October 3, October 13 were declared to be \u201cwithout lawful authority and no legal effect\u201d.<\/p>\n Moreover, notifications issued by the law ministry on November 13 and November 15 after decisions taken by the cabinet were \u201cdeclared to be of no legal consequence\u201d. The court said that the November 15 notification \u201ccannot be given retrospective effect\u201d.<\/p>\n The order said, \u201cConsequently, the proceedings with effect from August 29 and the trial conducted [\u2026] in jail premises in a manner that cannot be termed as an open trial stand vitiated,\u201d the order said.<\/p>\n The cipher case pertains to a diplomatic document<\/a> that the Federal Investigation Agency\u2019s charge sheet alleges was never returned<\/a> by Imran. The PTI has long held that the document contained a threat from the United States to oust Imran as prime minister.<\/p>\n The former premier and his aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is also behind bars, were indicted<\/a> in the case on Oct 23. Both have pleaded not guilty.<\/p>\n The IHC has endorsed<\/a> Imran\u2019s indictment, disposing of his plea against the same, but had also instructed the special court judge to ensure a \u201cfair trial\u201d. Last week, the court halted<\/a> trial court proceedings against the PTI chief while hearing his intra-court appeal.<\/p>\n During the previous hearing, the IHC sought the appointment record<\/a> of the judge conducting the jail trial in the case. The court had also ordered the registrar to present the letter written by Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain to the IHC administration for permission to conduct the ex-PM\u2019s trial in jail.<\/p>\n During today\u2019s hearing, Imran\u2019s lawyer Advocate Salman Akram Raja started presenting his arguments. Citing high court rules, he said a judge\u2019s permission was mandatory for a jail trial.<\/p>\n \u201cThe judge then informs relevant ministry via the high court or district magistrate or commissioner\u2019s office,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n Here, Justice Aurangzeb inquired what the judge should do foremost for a jail trial. In his response, Raja said the judge had to list reasons for the same with a \u201cclear mind\u201d.<\/p>\n However, the lawyer continued, the reasons for Imran\u2019s jail trial were not conveyed in the Aug 29 documents. \u201cEven if we accept that the trial was initiated by a judge, the process that followed was incomplete,\u201d Raja argued.<\/p>\n Raja highlighted that the federal cabinet is empowered to approve jail trials but in this scenario, no such decision was taken until mid-November. \u201cThe federal cabinet\u2019s approval only came when the intra-court appeal was under way,\u201d he revealed.<\/p>\n Raja contended that a judicial order pertaining to the same had also not been issued yet. \u201cThe judicial order of a jail trial gives us the chance to present our stance,\u201d the lawyer added and urged the court to declare the jail trial unlawful.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Justice Aurangzeb asked if the federal cabinet\u2019s decision was taken to fulfil legal requirements. \u201cHow can the cabinet approve something that was never sought,\u201d the PTI counsel responded.<\/p>\n He said the special court judge never mentioned the previous proceedings in the case. Whereas, in the notification issued by the government, nothing similar to what the judge said was written, Raja added.<\/p>\n \u201cAs per Article 352, the November notification is not applicable to previous hearings,\u201d he contended.<\/p>\n At that, Justice Aurangzeb asked if the lawyer was saying that the government\u2019s order on jail trial was issued merely to fulfil legal obligations.<\/p>\n No, Raja replied, adding that the cabinet\u2019s approval came without a judicial order.<\/p>\n The judge then said that the IHC registrar had informed the court that the process of appointing the judge was initiated by the Islamabad High Court. \u201cWe were also told that the special court judge informed the IHC before commencing the jail trial,\u201d Justice Aurangzeb revealed.<\/p>\n Raja, while concluding his arguments, then contended that all the notifications pertaining to the jail trial were illegal. \u201cIf you want to conduct a jail trial, you will have to adopt a legal procedure and provide solid reasons for it,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Subsequently, Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan came to the rostrum. He said a jail trial wasn\u2019t for ordinary people to attend but at the same time highlighted that Imran\u2019s family members were allowed to attend the proceedings.<\/p>\n He recalled that Imran was in prison at the time of arrest and therefore a physical remand was not taken. \u201cIf the things that exist in the law are not taking place, then you say that justice is not being served,\u201d the AGP said and highlighted that charges were framed against the accused in front of him as per the law.<\/p>\n The hearing is held at a big hall in Adiala Jail, Awan further said, adding that the jail trial against Imran was being conducted due to security reasons.<\/p>\n After the AGP concluded his arguments, the bench reserved the verdict with Justice Aurangzeb saying that the court would first issue a short order and then a detailed one at a later time.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In a boost for PTI, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday declared as null and void the proceedings of party chief Imran Khan\u2019s trial conducted in jail in the cipher case. As a result, Imran and his aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi\u2019s Oct 23 indictments in the case also stand null and void, and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/large\/2023\/11\/21135044858d4c1.jpg?r=135050","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-news"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26915\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The hearing<\/h2>\n