A Pakistani special court indicted former PM Imran Khan on Monday for leaking secret diplomatic cables in another blow to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief ahead of the 2024 general elections.
Ex-foreign minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi was also indicted along with the cricketer-turned-politician for violating the Official Secrets Act.
Overview
The case hearing took place in the court of Judge Adual Hasnat Zulqarnain in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.
On 30 September, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) presented a charge sheet with Qureshi as the principal accused in the case. The indictment was supposed to occur on 17 October, but it was put off till 23 October after Khan’s lawyers said he was not provided a copy of the charge sheet.
Both the PTI leaders were present in the court during the announcement of the indictment.
Following the indictment, the formal trial will begin on 27 October, with the court summoning witnesses for the next hearing.
Khan and Qureshi have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The Cipher Case
The Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs received a cipher telegram dated 7 March 2022 from the Pakistani representative in Washington.
According to the case registered under the Official Secrets Act, the former PM and former FM communicated information in the secret classified document to unauthorised persons (i.e., the public).
Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, his deputy indicted by court in official secrets acts case - Geo TV https://t.co/T32IHNyWGs pic.twitter.com/eknOkpY2s4
— Reuters (@Reuters) October 23, 2023
The allegations suggest that Khan disclosed and used the official document to build a narrative that he was ousted from the government following a foreign conspiracy.
This was accomplished by distorting the truth in a way that was harmful to the interests of national security in order to further their personal goals and ulterior motives.
Khan and his party have alleged that he was ousted from power in April 2022 as a part of a conspiracy led by the US and the Pakistani military after he visited Moscow just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
US-based news outlet Intercept published reports in August that corroborated the former PM’s claims that the US encouraged Pakistan to oust Imran Khan. Both the US and Pakistan had denied the claims.
Cases Against Imran Khan
Khan faces a plethora of charges, with over 150 cases filed against him since his removal from office.
The PTI chief was convicted and sentenced to three years in prison in the Toshakhana case on 5 August.
He was also barred from contesting elections for five years.
As per this case, Khan had unlawfully sold state gifts during his tenure in office from 2018-2022.
Big Blow For #ImranKhan! Pakistan Ex-PM Indicted In Leaked Documents Casehttps://t.co/AoUZZmSY67
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) October 23, 2023
Although his sentence was suspended on 29 August by the Islamabad High Court, Khan remained in jail as he was on judicial remand in the cipher case.
In Pakistan, nationwide protests broke out following his arrest in the Al-Qadir Trust case, which accused him of obtaining money and lands illegally.
The latest indictment will further complicate Khan’s political fortunes, especially with the return of former Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif to the country after a four-year-long self-imposed exile in London.