FIA JIT grills Imran in cipher case for two hours

Azam Khan reportedly termed US cipher a "conspiracy" used by ex-PM to "manipulate for creating a narrative against establishment and opposition”

By Ag & Our Correspondent

July 26, 2023

Former prime minister Imran Khan speaks during an interview with AFP at his residence in Lahore on May 18, 2023. — AFP

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan appeared before the Joint Investigation Team of the Federal Investigation Agency on Tuesday, joining the cipher investigation.

FIA sources said the PTI chairman remained with the JIT for over two hours and responded to the questions of the investigation team.

The JIT had summoned the PTI chairman to appear before its investigation team probing the cipher issue in the FIA headquarters, Islamabad, at 11am but he appeared in the evening, sources said.

The JIT had asked the PTI chairman to appear before the investigation team alone. The members of the JIT asked almost similar questions from the PTI chairman what they had put to Vice Chairman PTI Shah Mehmood Qureshi and former Secretary PTI Asad Umar summoned on Monday, the sources maintained. Officers from different FIA wings and one Grade-19 officer, each from three different intelligence institutions, were also present during the PTI vice chairman’s interrogation.

Responding to a question about the missing cipher, the former prime minister said: “Though cipher has been misplaced, everything is written in the minutes of both the meetings of National Security Committee while a copy of cipher is also available with the President of Pakistan and Supreme Commander of Armed Forces,” the sources maintained.

Imran Khan responded to most questions in short and most of the replies were repeated descriptions. The questionnaire included queries about the disappearance of the cipher as well as audio leaks, the sources said adding Imran claimed, “I don’t know, how cipher was misplaced.”

The sources claimed that most of the responses to the questions were complicated, short and unsatisfactory. The JIT also questioned Imran Khan about his statement on “to play with cipher” as reported in various statements and audio leaks but he replied in ambiguous terms, the sources said.

In a related development, PTI chairman moved to Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking a copy of Azam Khan’s cipher statement.