Imran, Qureshi meet in Adiala jail

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and party leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi met in the Adiala Jail during a hearing of the cypher case.

This marked the first meeting between the two leaders behind bars. In a peculiar arrangement, a net separated the courtroom from Imran and the former foreign minister.

The lawyers representing PTI had a brief conversation with the party chairman through the net. Sources further stated that Imran "appeared to be in a normal state" during the hearing lasted for approximately an hour.

However, the PTI leader, along with his lawyers, did not raise any concerns regarding prison facilities before the special court, they added.

Sources have revealed that the prosecution has requested an in-camera hearing and an early trial.Special Court Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain also mentioned that copies of the challan, or charge sheet, would be provided to the accused during the upcoming hearing of the cypher case in the jail.

The hearing was adjourned till October 9 upon the lawyers' request.

The cypher case is related to a diplomatic document that allegedly went missing from Imran's possession.

According to the PTI, the document contained a threat from the United States to remove the party chairman from his position.

Imran was transferred to Attock jail on August 5, 2023, after being sentenced to three years in prison in the Toshakhana graft case.

It was later revealed that he had been on judicial remand in the cypher case.

Both PTI leaders' judicial remand was extended until October 10 and, following the orders of the IHC (Islamabad High Court), Imran was moved from Attock district jail to Rawalpindi's Adiala jail.

On September 30, the FIA (Federal Investigation Agency) presented a charge sheet in the Special Court established under the Official Secrets Act, naming Imran and Qureshi as the main accused in the cypher case.

Earlier this week, the FIA requested in-camera proceedings for Imran's bail plea in the cypher case, stating that an open hearing could potentially harm diplomatic relations with other countries.

A day earlier, the Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification for the jail trial of the former premier and former foreign minister in the cypher case.