NEW DELHI: In another major relief, Islamabad High Court on Monday cleared Pakistan‘s former Prime Minister Imran Khan of charges related to leaking state secrets, according to his lawyer and party officials.
The court also acquitted former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case.
However, Khan will remain in prison for now due to another conviction.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a lower court on charges of making public a classified cable sent to Islamabad by Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington in 2022.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who was Khan’s foreign minister during his tenure from 2018-2022, was also acquitted of the charges. He will also remain in jail as he is also facing the May 9 cases, as per Dawn.
Expressing relief, a spokesperson for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, Naeem Panjutha, announced the overturning of the sentence on X social media platform. Despite this legal victory, Khan remains in custody due to a separate conviction linked to his marriage to his third wife, Bushra Khan, which was deemed to contravene Islamic traditions.
The cipher case revolves around a diplomatic document that, according to the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) charge sheet, was allegedly not returned by the former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Khan has persistently claimed that the document contained a threat from the US aimed at destabilizing his government.
(With inputs from agencies)
The court also acquitted former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case.
However, Khan will remain in prison for now due to another conviction.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a lower court on charges of making public a classified cable sent to Islamabad by Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington in 2022.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who was Khan’s foreign minister during his tenure from 2018-2022, was also acquitted of the charges. He will also remain in jail as he is also facing the May 9 cases, as per Dawn.
Expressing relief, a spokesperson for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, Naeem Panjutha, announced the overturning of the sentence on X social media platform. Despite this legal victory, Khan remains in custody due to a separate conviction linked to his marriage to his third wife, Bushra Khan, which was deemed to contravene Islamic traditions.
The cipher case revolves around a diplomatic document that, according to the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) charge sheet, was allegedly not returned by the former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Khan has persistently claimed that the document contained a threat from the US aimed at destabilizing his government.
(With inputs from agencies)