Islamabad, Jan 19 (PTI) Pakistan's caretaker government on Friday challenged in the Supreme Court the Islamabad High Court's verdict nullifying the jail trial of former prime minister Imran Khan in the cipher case for allegedly leaking state secrets, according to a media report.
In its petition filed in Pakistan's Supreme Court, the federal government implored the apex court to overturn the Islamabad High Court's decision, saying that the high court did not evaluate the facts of the case properly, The Express Tribune reported.
"In the petition, the government contended that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) did not have the authority to declare a special court formed to hold the cipher trial of the former premier as invalid," said the report.
The case is related to a diplomatic cable sent by the Pakistan embassy in March 2022 and Khan, 71, and one of his senior ministers Shah Mahmood Qureshi are accused of mishandling it for political purposes. Both were indicted last month and both pleaded not guilty.
In November last year, IHC nullified the notification for conducting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Khan's jail trial in the cipher case registered on charges of leaking state secrets.
The IHC stated in the three-page short order that the jail trial can be conducted in "exceptional circumstances", the report said.
"In exceptional circumstances and where it is conducive to justice, a trial can be conducted in jail in a manner that fulfils the requirements of an open trial or a trial in camera provided it is in accordance with the procedure provided by law."
The court also declared that the November 15 notification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice after the caretaker Cabinet's approval of the jail trial "cannot be given retrospective effect".