On Tuesday, the Islamabad High Court declared Imran Khan’s jail trial in the cipher case as ‘null and void,’ thereby overturning the August 29 notification.
The decision was announced by an IHC division bench consisting of Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, following an intra-court appeal filed by PTI chief Imran Khan against the approval of his jail trial by a single-member bench.
In a brief verdict, the court deemed Imran Khan’s intra-court appeal acceptable and confirmed the continuation of Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain, responsible for conducting the trial under the Official Secrets Act in the cipher case.
The court clarified that the law ministry’s notification on November 15 regarding Imran’s jail trial was no longer valid. Although a concise order has been issued by the IHC, a detailed verdict is expected to follow.
Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), is currently held in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi under judicial remand. The case involves the indictment of the former prime minister and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is also in jail, on October 23.
