ISLAMABAD: The special court adjourned the indictment of PTI Chairman Imran Khan and Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case until next week.
This case revolves around a diplomatic document that reportedly went missing from Imran’s possession. The PTI alleges that the document contained a threat from the United States to remove Imran from office.
Imran Khan was previously convicted and sentenced to three years in prison in the Toshakhana graft case on August 5, 2023, and was held in Attock jail. The sentence was later suspended by the IHC, but he remained in custody due to the ongoing judicial remand in the cipher case.
On September 25, Imran was permitted to be transferred to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi from Attock district jail, following his petition.
On September 30, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) submitted a charge sheet in the Special Court, naming Imran and Shah Mahmood Qureshi as the principal accused in the cipher case under the Official Secrets Act.
Today, Special Court Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain conducted an in-camera hearing of the cipher case at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. Imran’s lawyers, Barrister Salman Safdar and Khalid Yousuf Chaudhry, were present, along with State prosecutor Zulfikar Abbas Naqvi and the FIA’s team.
Qureshi’s wife and daughter attended the court, although it wasn’t confirmed if they could participate in the hearing.
According to court orders from October 9, both PTI leaders were expected to be indicted today. However, the indictment did not occur, and the court merely distributed copies of the charge sheet to the suspects. Consequently, the court adjourned the hearing until next week.
After the hearing, lawyer Sher Afzal Marwat stated that Imran and Qureshi would be indicted in the next hearing, as Imran had not accepted the charge sheet copies during the previous hearing. A specific date for the indictment is yet to be fixed.
Before the hearing, lawyer Shah Khawar noted that today had been set for indictment, but at the previous hearing, Imran had refused to accept the charge sheet copies, leading to the adjournment. He expressed uncertainty about the current situation.
(Islamabad51_Newsdesk)
