Adiala Jail authorities refrained from presenting former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan at Islamabad’s Federal Judicial Complex (FJC) on Tuesday, citing potential “security risks,” Dawn reported.
Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi were ordered to appear at the Federal Judicial Complex in the cipher case, which was presided over by Special Court Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain. According to the charge sheet of the federal investigation agency, this case revolves around an unreturned diplomatic document. According to PTI, the document allegedly contained a US threat to depose Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.
On October 23, Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, both currently incarcerated, were indicted. According to Dawn, both have pleaded not guilty.
Earlier proceedings held at Adiala Jail, where four witnesses testified, were invalidated by an Islamabad High Court division bench. Consequently, the special court is set to commence a fresh trial requiring a new prosecution application for the jail trial, Dawn reported.
Authorities at Adiala Jail submitted a report stating that “serious security risks” prevented Imran Khan from speaking on Tuesday. The FJC hearing was presided over by Judge Zulqarnain. During the hearing, Barrister Salman Safdar represented Imran Khan, while Advocate Ali Bukhari represented Qureshi. Prosecutors from the Federal Investigation Agency, Shah Khawar and Zulfikar Abbas Naqvi, were also present.
The court reviewed a jail report highlighting life threats to Imran Khan obtained from intelligence and police agencies. The report cited “serious security risks” that Khan faced, as well as a request made by jail officials to Islamabad police for additional security.
Furthermore, an accountability court in Islamabad denied the National Accountability Bureau’s request to extend Imran Khan’s physical remand in a corruption case. According to a report in Dawn, the court placed Khan on judicial remand and ordered his release in two weeks.