ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court has fixed the cipher case for hearing on Monday, June 3.
The hearing on the appeals against the punishment of the PTI founder and Shah Mehmood Qureshi was previously adjourned due to the Youm-e-Takbeer holiday on May 28.
On May 23, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) requested the IHC's permission to present the statement of US Assistant Secretary Donald Lu, given before a congressional committee in Washington, as evidence in the cipher case.
The FIA submitted a miscellaneous application to the IHC bench, comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, seeking to introduce additional evidence against Khan and Qureshi.
During the hearing, Chief Justice Aamer Farooq expressed concern about the FIA's request to present additional evidence so late in the proceedings. Justice Miangul Hassan questioned whether the prosecutor intended to call Lu as a witness or if this was a tactic to delay the case.
Chief Justice Farooq emphasized that the prosecution must justify the relevance of the new evidence according to criminal law. While acknowledging the prosecution's legal right to file a miscellaneous application, he noted the court's serious reservations about doing so at this stage.
The Islamabad advocate general informed the court that state counsel had been appointed for Khan and Qureshi on January 26, and they appeared before the trial court on January 27. State counsel Abdul Rehman stated that they were instructed by the trial court to conduct cross-examinations.
The court requested an affidavit from the state counsel who had cross-examined witnesses on behalf of the accused. The special prosecutor was summoned for arguments on Friday, and the case was adjourned.
