Cypher case to be heard in-camera

Rawalpindi: The Cypher Act special court Thursday accepted the appeal for in-camera hearing of the Cypher case against former Prime Minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

According to the details, yesterday Special Court Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain heard the prosecution's appeal filed by the prosecution under Section 14A.

During the hearing, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) prosecutor Rizwan Abbasi said in his arguments that under Section 14 of the Official Secrets Act, the hearing should be held in-camera.

Rizwan Abbasi stated that once the charge has been framed, the testimonies should be recorded and the secretaries should be taken into account while recording the testimonies.

Meanwhile, Shah Mehmood Qureshi's lawyer Ali Bukhari said that they had challenged the notification of the jail trial in the High Court which declared the notification invalid and ordered an open trial.

On this, the judge asked Ali Bukhari where you were during the hearing. The charge was framed in front of everyone, the indictment was read out in court.

Later, the court accepted the petition of the prosecution for in-camera hearing of the cypher case.

The court said that only the family members of the accused will be allowed access to the courtroom during the hearing.