Re-indicted in the Cypher case are Imran and Qureshi.

Re-indicted in the Cypher case are Imran and Qureshi.

Re-indicted in the Cypher case are Imran and Qureshi.

A special court hearing the cypher case in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail accused former prime minister Imran Khan and his foreign minister at the time, Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

The lawsuit began on March 27, 2022, when Imran displayed a paper in public during a rally in Islamabad, citing it as proof of a “international conspiracy” before his government was overthrown by a vote of no confidence.

The case against Imran and Qureshi was handled by Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain of the special court, which was established to hear cases pertaining to the Official Secrets Act.

During the hearing, the two PTI leaders entered not guilty pleas and declared the indictment to be “fabricated.” Additionally, Imran and Qureshi declared that the indictment was “illegal” and that they would contest it in court.

The court was told by prosecutor Rizwan Abbasi that witness statements will be recorded on Thursday. Subsequently, the court called the three official witnesses in the case and served a notice to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

After that, the hearing was postponed until tomorrow, December 14.

On July 19, 2023, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) opened an official investigation into the alleged “cypher-gate” following the announcement by the former coalition government that Imran and his close allies had violated the OSA.

Following his conviction in the Toshakhana case by an Islamabad local court, Imran was taken into custody on August 5. He was later detained in connection with the Cypher case on August 29.

Both Imran and the former foreign minister Qureshi were charged under sections 5 and 9 of the OSA, according to the challan files. These clauses carry the risk of life in prison or the death sentence.