The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has stopped the trial of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s trial in the cipher case till January 11 next year.
Judge Miangul Hassan of the IHC issued a ruling in response to an appeal filed by the former Prime Minister where he had contested both his indictment and the proceedings related to the cipher case conducted by the special court established under the Official Secrets Act.
Previously, during the hearing of the case, Justice Aurangzeb dismissed a plea from Usman Gul, the lawyer representing the PTI chief, requesting a stay on the trial. The judge clarified that the court would proceed by issuing notices before releasing any orders.
In this matter, the IHC issued a notice to the federation and asked Usman Gul to submit all the necessary documents regarding the case at the next hearing.
Pointing out the irregularities in the cipher case, the PTI lawyer argued in court that a first information report (FIR) had been filed before the submission of the official report.
The judge asked the PTI council what the point of the petition was. “The point is that the legal procedure was not completed before the indictment,” said the lawyer, responding to the judge.
The lawyer also said that a legally authorised individual can file a petition in court.
“You are saying that an authorised officer can file a complaint directly,” asked the judge.
Imran Khan’s lawyer requested the IHC direct the trial court to conduct the hearing after five or six days. “The trial court can complete the trial in the meantime,” he added.
“How many witness statements have been completed so far?” the judge questioned.
The lawyer responded that a total of 27 witnesses have recorded their statements before the court.
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