Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan will be indicted in the cipher case on October 17, Dawn reported citing the special court. The cipher controversy first emerged last year, when Imran Khan, just days before his ouster in April 2022, brandished a letter, claiming that it was a cipher from a foreign nation, which mentioned that his government should be ousted from power. And it reportedly went missing from Imran’s possession.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) alleged that it contained a threat from the United States to oust the party chairman from office.
The former PM was arrested on August 5 after a court sentenced 3 years imprisonment in the Toshakhana gift case. But after the suspension of the sentence, it had emerged that he had been on judicial remand in the cipher case.
Along with Imran Khan, ex-foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will also be indicted in the cipher case on October 17. Earlier, on September 26, both PTI leaders’ judicial remand was extended until October 10, and as per the Islamabad High Court’s orders, the PTI chief was shifted to Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail from Attock district jail.
Today, Special Court Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain presided over the cipher case hearing where the PTI chairman and the vice-chairman were presented and Imran briefly met his legal team from behind bars.
The special prosecutor informed the court that he could not provide the suspects with copies of the “entire case” but would only give them the “necessary copies”.
The copies of the challan in the case were then provided to Imran and Qureshi, reported Dawn.
It was decided that both leaders would be indicted during the next hearing, which would be held on October 17, marking the official start of the trial.
Notices of summons would also be issued to the government officials in the next hearing.
