Imran Khan’s allegations of a ‘foreign conspiracy’ behind the ouster of his government have had a long journey. From its first appearance at a political rally in March last year, the ‘cipher’ communicating the alleged threat given by a US official has been the story’s centerpiece.

While Khan’s narrative has slowly shifted from blaming the US to blaming the former army chief for the fall of his government, it seems everyone missed one thing that could have settled whether or not the ‘conspiracy’ is real or imagined. Why not just investigate the cipher?

Well, if you ask Justice Qazi Faez Isa, the cipher was never investigated because Imran Khan never investigated it.

And it is not a matter of if, three lawyers actually did ask the judge why the Supreme Court cannot just investigate the cipher and put an end to the brouhaha.

The petitions were filed by three people: Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta, Naeem ul Hassan and Syed Tariq Badar. They argued that investigating the cipher was a matter of fundamental rights under article 184(3).

After the registrar dismissed these petitions as inadmissible, Justice Isa heard the appeals in his chambers. And in the short judgement that came out on Thursday, Justice Isa said the issue is not just about whether the cipher merits an investigation, but about keeping clear of each other’s domains.

After brushing aside the question of whether any fundamental rights had been affected with a ‘no’, Justice Isa turns to the why the Judiciary and Executive are separate.

Referring to Article 9 of the Constitution, he elaborates that it is the federation’s prerogative to look into matters for which laws are made by Parliament. This includes ‘External Affairs’ which would include a threatening cipher by a foreign government. He also clarifies that ordering inquiries under the Pakistan Commissions of Inquiry Act, 2017 is a power restricted to the Executive.

“However, if this court were to resort to the Act in initiating an inquiry, it would not only contravene the Act but will also be assuming the executive power of the Federal Government,” he wrote.

So if the cipher were to be investigated, it could only be done by the person who was in power when the cipher originally appeared.

Even if the Supreme Court is the final arbiter of the law in the land, Justice Isa would like to remind everyone that the Judiciary and Executive are indeed separate.

“Needless to state that neither should encroach upon the domain of the other,” reads the judgement.

So if the cipher was not investigated, Justice Isa thinks it is because the person empowered to do it (in this case Imran Khan) chose not do it in time. Now, the fact that the person with the power to investigate the cipher was also allegedly its main target, but no investigation took place is a mighty interesting one.