The Islamabad High Court (IHC) directed on Monday that former prime minister Imran Khan be brought to Adiala Jail from Attock Jail, Aaj News reported.
Chief Justice Aamer Farooq was hearing the post-arrest bail plea filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman in the cipher case.
“The status of PTI chairman’s sentence has changed. All under-trial prisoners of Islamabad are detained at the Adiala jail,” the justice said.
“Why has the PTI chairman been kept at the Attock Jail till now? Why not at the Adiala jail?”
He also sought a response from AAG Dogal regarding shifting Imran to Adiala Jail.
The case in question is related to the “misuse” of alleged contents of a diplomatic cipher, cited by ex-premier Imran as proof of the attempt to remove his government.
Imran is currently incarcerated at the Attock Jail. On Saturday, the high court had fixed the hearing for Monday (today).
On September 16, a bail plea was filed through the former PM’s counsel Salman Safdar. The petition named State and Interior Ministry Secretary Yousuf Naseem Khokar as respondent in the case.
Imran filed the plea after a special court — established under the Official Secrets Act and hearing the case registered against the PTI chief and his party’s vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi — had rejected the post-arrest bail applications of Imran and the senior politician.
Earlier this week, the special court judge, Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain, while hearing the case, approved the PTI chairman’s petition seeking to allow him to meet with his legal team and his doctor in Attock Jail.
Last month, the IHC had sought responses from the federal and Punjab governments to a petition filed by Imran Khan seeking a transfer from Attock Jail to Adiala Jail.
The order was issued after Imran approached the IHC seeking A-Class jail facilities. The petition was filed by Imran’s lawyer Naeem Haider Panjutha.
The petition urged the IHC to declare Imran’s detention in Attock Jail “illegal”. It also requested that Imran be shifted to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.
Later, Khan’s lawyer Naeem Haider Panjutha shared on X, formerly Twitter, that the PTI chief had been shifted to the Adiala Jail and was provided adequate facilities. However, the lawyer deleted the post after some reports claimed that Khan was still in Attock Jail.
Panjutha shared another post after some time saying he did receive information aboutPTI chairman’s shifting to the Adiala Jail, but the Attock Jail authorities also claimed that Imran Khan was still there.
Meanwhile, as per media reports, the Ministry of Law and Justice also issued a notice stating that it had no objection on the trial of Imran Khan on September 26 under jail due to security concerns.
However, the notice did not have name of the concerned jail mentioned.
Cipher case background
A case was registered against Imran and Qureshi under Sections 5 and 9 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923.
According to the copy of the FIR registered on August 15, consequent upon the conclusion of inquiry No 111/2023 upon the complaint registered in the Counter Terrorism Wing (CTW), FIA, it transpired that former prime minister namely, Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi, former foreign minister namely, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, and their other associates are involved in the communication of information contained in the secret classified document (cipher telegram received from Parep Washington dated March 7, 2022, to secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs) to the unauthorised persons (i.e., public at large) by twisting the facts to achieve their “ulterior motives” and personal gains in a manner prejudicial to the interests of state security.