Tag: #ImranKhan

  • Imran Khan is in jail for 10 years: what does he want you to do?

    Imran Khan is in jail for 10 years: what does he want you to do?

    In a recent message issued from jail, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan has told his supporters what to do in case he is sentenced in the cipher case.

    Former Prime Minister Imran Khan and senior PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi were sentenced to 10 years each in the cipher case today. Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain heard delivered the verdict orally at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.

    Khan expressed concerns about the ongoing trial and other alleged false cases in a post on X (former Twitter). He highlighted the challenges faced in ensuring a fair trial, emphasizing the manipulation of legal proceedings and attempts to prematurely conclude the case.

    “Cipher case has twice been declared null and void by the Islamabad High Court followed by orders of a retrial because both times this case was being tried outside of law and constitution,” Prime Minister Khan stated.

    He further pointed out that despite the central witnesses’ testimonies yielding no substantial evidence against him and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the orchestrators of the ‘London Plan’ seem determined to conclude the trial without following proper legal procedures.

    “It’s not a trial; it’s a fixed match, with results predetermined by the architects of the London Plan and their cohorts. Hence, I am aware of the outcome even before the trial concludes,” Khan asserted.

    Addressing his supporters, Khan cautioned against falling into the trap set by those who wish to exploit the situation for their interests. He urged them to stay vigilant and not be swayed by provocations aiming to incite protests on the streets.

    “Some want me to receive a harsh punishment in this case to fuel public outrage, leading to street protests akin to the May 8 scenario. Others hope for a sense of despair and disappointment among you, keeping you confined to your homes on February 8,” he stated.

    Khan called upon the people to view the situation as a test of their resilience and commitment to justice. He reminded them of the power of their vote, urging them to stand against the manipulative forces and ensure a fair electoral process.

    “My faith is that just as you broke free from the chains of fear in the past, you will come out in millions on election day, defeating the architects of the London Plan and showing them that we are not helpless animals to be herded. I believe February 8 will be a day of victory, Insha’Allah,” concluded Prime Minister Imran Khan.

    What is a Cipher case?

    Imran Khan faced allegations that he violated the Official Secrets Act when he disclosed a secret diplomatic cable, called the Cipher. This was sent by Pakistan’s embassy in Washington in March 2022. Khan reportedly lost possession of the diplomatic cable later.

    Both Khan and Qureshi claimed that the cable had a threat from the US to topple the PTI government which was then in power in Pakistan.

    Khan was ousted from the prime ministerial office in April 2022 after a no-confidence vote. Since being relieved of the premier post, more than 150 cases have been slapped against him.

  • Imran Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi get bail from Supreme Court in cipher case

    Imran Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi get bail from Supreme Court in cipher case

    The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Friday approved post-arrest bail for former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan and Vice-Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case.

    The PTI founder and vice-chairman were indicted in the cipher case by a special court established under the Official Secrets Act 2023 after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) declared their jail trial null and void.

    During proceedings today, the top court heard the petition against Khan and Qureshi’s October 23 indictment, as reported by Maryam Nawaz on Geo News.

    At the outset of the hearing, Justice Masood remarked that the indictment that was challenged was already nullified by the IHC on November 21.
    As a result, Imran and Qureshi’s Oct 23 indictments in the case also stood null and void, and the trial was conducted again.

    Justice Masood said that the fresh indictment will not be affected by the previous proceedings that were declared invalid by the IHC.

    At this, Khan’s counsel Hamid Khan argued that the trial was taking place on the previous charge sheet.

    Justice Masood said that the petition against the old charge sheet has become infructuous. “If you have an objection to the fresh indictment then challenge it in the high court,” the judge told the lawyer.

    To this, Hamid requested the court to wait for the Islamabad High Court’s decision today against the in-camera trial in the cipher case.

    Khan’s other counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, said that Hamid had made amendments to his petitions, requesting the court to accept it as a fresh one.

    The court then adjourned the hearing on the plea against indictment while the hearing on bail pleas got underway.

  • Gen Faiz is not under arrest, Geo reports

    Gen Faiz is not under arrest, Geo reports

    The former Director General Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed is not under detention or arrest, Geo has reported.

    In the past few days, unconfirmed news reports were doing the rounds on social media that the former DG ISI is under house arrest in his village near Chakwal, while being investigated in the matter of May 9 riots.

    Geo’s sources have refuted the social media reports, saying that Gen Faiz is not arrested. One of the sources added that he has met one of the former spymasters.

    One of the correspondents tried to contact the former DG ISI but his phone was switched off. Before his retirement, Gen Faiz remained a central figure during the previous government’s tenure and in political discussions. He had been criticized by opponents of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for unduly favouring the ruling party.

    Gen Faiz was also believed to be very close with former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has previously said that an inquiry can be conducted against Gen Fiaz Hameed but it would be the responsibility of investigative agencies as the interior ministry has nothing to do with it.

  • ‘Country will take off after Nawaz Sharif returns’: Maryam Nawaz

    ‘Country will take off after Nawaz Sharif returns’: Maryam Nawaz

    Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President, Maryam Nawaz, criticised Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan on Sunday, accusing him of being the mastermind of the May 9 riots.

    Addressing a public rally in Shujabad, she further said that Imran is now begging for forgiveness.

    Calling the events of May 9- when PTI supporters clashed with law enforcement agencies- “painful”, Maryam Nawaz observed that it was good that the enemy of the country has been recognized. “The chapter of temptation and mischief is closed. Now the journey of development will begin,” she said.

    She also said that hands that build the country do not vandalize the country, rather they vandalize the vandals, promising that the country will take off after her father, former Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, returns to Pakistan.

    Maryam Nawaz was also given a gold tiara and a traditional chadar at the workers convention.

  • Aitzaz Ahsan is trying to become PTI’s Senator, says Capt Safdar

    Aitzaz Ahsan is trying to become PTI’s Senator, says Capt Safdar

    Pakistani Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Caption retd Safdar, who also happens to be Maryam Nawaz’s husband, has said that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) former federal minister Aitzaz Ahsan is trying to become a senator on a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ticket.

    “Aitzaz Ahsan has made the judgment of this respectful court very controversial. He has spent 40 years as a lawyer and yet he did this,” Safdar said while talking to media outside Lahore High Court.

    Ahsan, while talking to media persons last week at the Lahore High Court had given a statement criticising Chief of Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Ahsan alleged that the army chief rescued the Sharif family from conviction in cases and had thus committed a “big crime.”

    He said the cases against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif were open-and-shut and their conviction was evident.

    Safdar also talked about Sunday’s by-elections and said, “Imran Khan knew that if his party members contested the elections, they would have failed, hence he contested himself. He does not have faith in his people.”

  • IK back on live TV: High Court suspends ban on IK’s speeches

    IK back on live TV: High Court suspends ban on IK’s speeches

    The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday (August 29) suspended the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (PEMRA) recent notification that banned television channels from airing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s live speeches.

    IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah suspended the notification till September 5 after hearing the arguments and issued notices to the regulatory authority and Attorney-General of Pakistan Ashtar Ausaf Ali.

    The IHC chief justice said that PEMRA “does not have the authority” to issue such notifications.

    Justice Minallah asked Imran’s counsel if he defended Imran’s comments.

    “Can judges be threatened like this,” he asked, recalling the human rights violations that took place in the last three years.

    “I am saying this with a heavy heart that judges should not have been threatened. It is disappointing that the [incumbent] government is doing exactly what happened in the last three years,” he said.

    Justice Minallah pointed out that a woman judge was threatened. “Did your leader not say that he won’t spare her? If they had said something like this about me, it would have been fine […] But a woman judge?”

    The PEMRA ban was issued on August 21 after Imran Khan threatened Additional District and Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry, DIG and IG Islamabad.

    Imran Khan is set to host a telethon today (August 29) to appeal for funds for the flood affectees.

  • Enough!

    Pakistani women are angry and rightly so. We feel violated, we feel triggered, we are seething, we are shouting but we feel as if no one listens. Every day, there is a hashtag asking for justice for women who have been victims of abuse, domestic violence, sexual violence. We are not mere hashtags; violence against women in Pakistan is an epidemic now. 

    On August 14, a female TikToker was sexually assaulted and harassed by hundreds of men at Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore. An FIR has been registered. Prime Minister Imran Khan and Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar have vowed to catch the culprits. But is this enough? No, it is not! A woman was groped, assaulted, harassed for more than two hours by 300-400 men and nobody could stop it. Let this sink in. Hundreds of men and more than two hours! Imagine her trauma, imagine her pain, imagine her helplessness, imagine how she has been scarred for life. We cannot even imagine what she must be going through and can only show solidarity with her by our words. The state has to act against the culprits who committed this heinous crime. 

    We are angry because there is a societal and systematic rot that we must fight every second, every minute, every hour, every day! Women in Pakistan are not safe in their graves, they are not safe in public spaces, they are not safe in their homes, they are not safe in their cars, they are not safe. Period.
    This is a country where the prime minister says that if a woman is wearing very few clothes, it will have an impact on men unless they are robots. When he is called out for being a rape apologist, women parliamentarians come out to defend his statement. When he later changes his stance and says that no matter what a woman wears or “how provocative she is”, the person who commits rape is responsible, we are told that his statement is a “slap in the face of the detractors and critics”. Should we celebrate that the prime minister did not indulge in victim-blaming again and for once laid the responsibility on the perpetrator instead of women? We live in a society where women are blamed for stepping out of their house, for their dress, for just being a woman! When women question this mindset, all we hear are justifications for the crime! 

    Let it be said once and for all: ENOUGH! We have had enough of this. We ask our state and our leaders and our society to end this epidemic.