PTI Chairman Imran Khan has been accused of misusing secret documents for personal purposes, disseminating information to unnecessary people, and jeopardising national security
These charges have been disclosed in the charge sheet that was read out during Monday’s proceedings of the cipher case in Adiala Jail when Imran Khan and PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi were indicted.
Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain read out the charge sheet to both the suspects on Monday. Imran Khan as the prime minister kept the cipher with him illegally and misused the secret document, as per the charge sheet.
The cipher was a top secret document between Pakistan and the US, and was used inappropriately in a prohibited place and a public meeting. It further alleged that the cipher's confidential information was disclosed to unauthorized persons.
The charge sheet mentioned that the suspects were not authorized to further use the information against the interest of the state. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave the cipher to the PTI chairman in confidence.
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The suspects kept the cipher with them and used it for political purposes, the charge sheet stated. This process compromised the classified document and the country's security system.
“The security of the state of Pakistan was affected by your action as the prime minister,” as per the charges against the prime minister.
On March 28, 2022, a plan was hatched by the two suspects at a Bani Gala meeting to use the cipher for personal purposes, the charge sheet stated.
“You maliciously used the cipher to your advantage and endangered national security,” according to the charge sheet, adding, “You kept the cipher sent to you from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and did not return it.”
Despite being unauthorized, the suspects kept the cipher with him illegally. The suspects have been charged under sections 5 and 9 of the Official Secrets Act.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi assisted the PTI chairman in the crime, and is held complicit in the crime, according to the charge sheet.
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