Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and the party’s Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi Wednesday were indicted in the cipher case again. The two leaders were indicted by the special court established under the Official Secrets Act 2023. Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain issued the verdict that framed charges against the PTI leaders. Both politicians have pleaded not guilty to their involvement in the offence related to the alleged misuse of diplomatic cable for political purposes. This was the second time that the PTI leaders were indicted. Prosecutor Rizwan Abbasi informed the court that the statements of the witnesses will be recorded on Thursday. The court then issued a notice to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and summoned the three official witnesses of the case. The hearing was then adjourned till tomorrow (December 14). The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) initiated its probe into the so-called “cipher-gate” on July 19, 2023, after the previous coalition government announced an official inquiry against Imran and his close associates for violating the OSA. Imran was arrested on August 5, following his conviction in the Toshakhana case by a local court of Islamabad. Later, he was also arrested in the cypher case on August 29. As per the challan papers, both Imran and Qureshi, the former foreign minister, were charged under sections 5 and 9 of the OSA. These provisions entail the possibility of the death penalty or life imprisonment.
Imran Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi indicted in cipher case again
