New Delhi: The former captain of the Pakistani Cricket Team and the Former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan had been jailed in August 2023 for a period of three years over graft but later, his sentence was overturned and he was kept in custody on a more serious charge of leaking classified State documents. In a latest development in the Cipher Case, Imran Khan, and along with him, Shah Mehmood Qureshi have been given a ten-year prison sentence according to Pakistani Media.
Pakistani Court Sentences Imran Khan To 10 Years In Prison
As mentioned earlier, a Pakistan court has sentenced former prime minister Imran Khan and former Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to jail for 10 years each in a case involving leaking of state secrets, local media reported on Tuesday. The special court had begun the cipher trial afresh last month at the Adiala district jail after Imran and Qureshi were indicted for a second time in the case on December 13, Dawn News reported.
Imran Khan’s Aid Shah Mahmood Qureshi Also Given Prison Sentence
A special court established under the Official Secrets Act sentenced Pakistan Tehreeke-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Khan and former Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi handed out the 10-year jail sentence in the cypher case, Dawn reported. The verdict was announced by special court Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain during the hearing held at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. The former premier and Qureshi, who is also behind bars, were first indicted in the case in October. Both had pleaded not guilty. The IHC had termed the government’s notification for a jail trial “erroneous” and scrapped the entire proceedings.
Former PM Imran Khan Reaction
Taking to social media platform X, Khan said, “This is not a trial but a fixed match whose outcome was predetermined by the characters and planners of the London Plan and their seals. That is why I already know the decision of this case.” He added, “Remember that Cipher is a case which has been declared null and void twice by the Islamabad High Court and ordered to be re-tried because both times the case was tried to be run in violation of the constitution and the law. Then the Supreme Court has also given me bail in this case because the whole building of this case has been built on lies, bullying, conspiracy and deceit.”
He urged, “My Pakistanis! This is your war and this is your test that you have to take revenge for every injustice by your vote on February 8 while remaining peaceful. Innocent Pakistanis imprisoned in jails for the last 8 months will get justice and release now only with your vote. I believe that just as you broke the chains of fear yesterday, you will come out in millions on election day and defeat the planners of the London plan by the power of your vote and tell them that we There are no sheep that can be driven with a stick. I believe that February 8 will be our day of victory. God willing.”
What Is The Cipher Case?
The cipher case concerns a diplomatic cable, which reportedly went missing from Khan’s possession. Khan had repeatedly said before and after the no-confidence motion against him last year that the cipher pointed to a conspiracy to remove him from the prime minister’s office. Khan has been in jail due to cipher case since the Islamabad High Court on August 29 granted him bail in the Toshakhana case in which he was arrested on August 5 from Lahore. More than 150 cases have been registered against Khan since ouster from power in April last year.
(Inputs from ANI)