By Special Correspondent
ISLAMABAD: A special court set up in Islamabad earlier in the day Monday remanded Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi into FIA custody for four days, in the cipher case.
A special court was set up in Islamabad same day to hear cases under the Official Secrets Act from across the country.
Islamabad’s anti-terrorism court No. 1 Judge Abu al Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain was appointed as the judge of the special court. The ATC confirmed that there will be a single court across the country to hear cases registered under the Act.
Official Secrets Act
According to the Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill-2023, a person will be guilty of an offence if he intentionally creates public order or acts against the state.
Under the said amendment, the accused will be tried in a special court and a decision will be taken after completing the hearing within 30 days.
The twist
President Dr Arif Alvi caused a stir on Sunday by claiming that he never signed the Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill and the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, attributing the confusion to his staff’s ‘defiance’. The claim by the president plunged the country into a state of legal and constitutional chaos.
In a social media post, the president vehemently denied giving his assent to the two bills, triggering a constitutional controversy with the PTI holding that the two bills were never a valid piece of legislation, especially after the president’s claim.
Caretaker Law Minister Ahmad Irfan Aslam also spoke at a joint news conference with Caretaker Information Minister shortly after President Alvi denied that he assented to the two bills to say the bills had become law automatically after 10 days.
