Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan, aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi indicted in cipher case

A special court in Pakistan on Wednesday charged former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his close associate former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case. They are accused of leaking state secrets and violating the country’s laws. Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqernain presided over the proceedings at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where the two leaders have been incarcerated in the case. The judge read out the charges against the two leaders, who were present inside the courtroom, but both of them pleaded not guilty. This marks the second instance of their indictment. The initial indictment took place on 23 October, but the process was invalidated by the Islamabad High Court. Judge Zulqernain, during a 4 December hearing, emphasised the necessity for a fresh indictment following the Islamabad High Court’s ruling, which deemed all previous proceedings illegal due to procedural issues related to the jail trial. Consequently, a new process was initiated to conduct an in-prison trial for the duo, ensuring all procedures were completed, and the case was restarted from the beginning. The Federal Investigation Agency had registered the cipher case on 15 August, accusing Khan and Qureshi of violating the secret laws of the country. The case revolves around allegations that a diplomatic document sent by the Pakistan embassy in March of the previous year was mishandled by the two leaders, leading to a breach of the nation’s confidential laws. With inputs from agencies