The special court postponed the hearing in the cypher case against former premier Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to October 23.
Cypher case postponed till next week: During the hearing at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, special court judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain informed the court that all relevant case materials had been provided to the defense.
At the prior hearing, the defence team had rejected the case challan.
The defence attorney objected to holding Qureshi’s trial in jail at today’s proceedings.
The prosecutor then stated that the federal government had issued a notification in this regard.
The defense claimed that the notification, which was only made public on Tuesday, rendered all previous proceedings and the case materials provided at that time unlawful.
After more case materials were given to the defence team, the hearing was postponed.
The indictment procedure will begin at the following hearing, the judge said.
A trial in prison
Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), filed a plea against the trial taking place inside the jail grounds. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) dismissed the petition on Monday and instructed the petitioner to take their case up with the trial court.
Chief Justice Aamer Farooq stated that Imran won the trial inside the jail because of the security concerns when announcing the reserved decision on the PTI leader’s case. He continued by saying that Imran had frequently voiced worries about his safety.
The court also stated in its ruling that it didn’t seem like there was any malicious intent behind putting the trial inside a prison. The chief justice did add that the petitioner could approach the trial court if he had any concerns.
The cypher case concerns a document that Imran, the former prime minister, carried during a public rally in March of last year, claiming it to be proof of a foreign conspiracy behind the motion of no confidence he was then facing. A few weeks later, the motion was approved, and Imran’s administration came to an end.
The IHC combined Imran’s earlier applications last week in an effort to have the case dismissed and halt the Special Court’s trial of him for violating the Official Secrets Act (OSA).
“IHC Hearing on PTI Chairman’s Petition and Cypher Case”
The PTI chairman submitted a new petition to the IHC on Saturday, requesting an exemption under Article 248 of the Constitution.According to the petition, the cypher case was exempt from Section 5 of the OSA. The court had issued a notice to the FIA, demanding a response by Monday. The court also consolidated the petition and Imran’s other objections to the case.
The IHC took up Imran’s other applications, including his request for bail, on Monday. Rizwan Abbasi, a special prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), presented the chain of custody for the cypher in court during the hearing.
In addition to three expert witness statements, the special prosecutor claimed that former foreign secretary Asad Majeed and former senior secretary to the prime minister Azam Khan were the major witnesses in the case.
Abbasi stated that the petitioner was requesting immunity pursuant to Article 248 but added that he was exempt from this provision. Salman Safdar, a lawyer for the PTI, objected, and the chief judge said he merely wanted to understand the chain of possession of the cypher.
Sardar Latif Khosa, an attorney for Imran, asserted in court that no one has refuted the cypher’s text. The prime minister, he said, served as the people’s representative and was responsible for the nation’s relations with foreign states.
Khosa further noted that the federal cabinet has declassified the cypher. Khosa asked the court to dismiss the OSA-filed cypher case against the PTI chairman and end the trial as he was wrapping up his remarks. Later, the court held upon its decision.