The indictment of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in the cipher case has been challenged in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Wednesday.
“The PTI chairman was indicted in haste,” the petition stated.
“The indictment against the PTI chairman should be declared illegal,” it requested.
“The indictment of the PTI chairman is a violation of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898,” it maintained.
“The indictment is also a violation of Articles 4 and 10/A of the Constitution,” it added.
On Monday, a special court indicted former prime minister and PTI chairman Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the cipher leaking case registered against them under the Official Secrets Act.
Both Imran Khan and Shah Mehmood Qureshi pleaded not guilty, with PTI chief declaring the case as "false, politically motivated, based on vengeance and a pack of lies. I will prove my innocence."
The lawyers of the PTI chairman and vice-chairman appeared in the court. Imran Khan’s chief lawyer Salman Safdar did not attend the hearing while other members of the team including Usman Riaz, Gul Umair Niazi and Khalid Yousuf were present in the court. Taimur Malik and Raja Qamar Inayat represented Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Special Court Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain heard the case at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. The judge summoned the witnesses to appear in the court on October 27 to testify in the case.
Rejecting another application from Imran Khan to defer the charge-sheet, the judge remarked: "Today is the day for indictment."
Reporter: Rozina Ali