ISLAMABAD: The Joint Inquiry Team of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has once again summoned Chairman Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on August 1, a notice issued to PTI chief said.
The Chairman PTI has been instructed to bring relevant records and documents along with him. There will be follow-up questions on the recorded statement of Chairman PTI on July 25, the notice further said.
Earlier on July 25, the FIA grilled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman for nearly two hours in a case related to a cypher that allegedly contains details of a threat made by the United States against the previous government.
In a public gathering on March 27, 2022, in Islamabad, the PTI chief waved a letter claiming that it was evidence of an “international conspiracy” backed by the US to topple his government.
Last week, the investigation agency summoned the deposed prime minister — who was removed from office via a no-confidence motion in April last year — on July 25 after the Lahore High Court (LHC) withdrew a stay order against the call-up notice to Khan by the FIA into the audio leak involving the US diplomatic cable.
The FIA launched investigations against the ex-prime minister for allegedly making public a confidential diplomatic cable and keeping it in his possession.
As per details, the PTI chief appeared before the joint investigation team of the federal probe authorities at its headquarters. After nearly a two-hour-long interrogation, the deposed premier left the FIA headquarters.
On July 24, the FIA interrogated PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi for nearly two hours in connection with its ongoing probe into the controversial US cipher.
Qureshi appeared before an eight-member team headed by FIA Islamabad Zone Director Rana Abdul Jabbar after it had summoned him — as he is one of the central characters in the cipher saga due to his position as the foreign minister during PTI’s tenure.
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.
The cypher issue took a new turn last week when former premier Khan’s then-principal secretary Azam Khan “recorded” a statement, terming the US cypher a “conspiracy” used by the ex-PM to “manipulate for creating a narrative against establishment and opposition. Azam, who had been “missing” since last month, recorded his statement under CrPC 164 before a magistrate, sources said.
