Pakistan’s ex-FM arrested under Official Secrets Act

PESHAWAR (Pajhwok): Pakistan’s former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been arrested and booked under the Official Secrets Act of 1923.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested Qureshi, vice chairman of the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf, from his residence in Islamabad on Saturday.

He was detained in connection with a diplomatic cable that went missing from his custody. Ex-premier and PTI chief Imran Khan is already being grilled in the same case.

Khan and his party leaders have long presented the so-called cipher as evidence of a US conspiracy to remove him as prime minister.

The ex-premier had also been nominated in the case registered on August 15, according to the first information report (FIR) registered against Qureshi.

The FIR was registered on a complaint from Ministry of Interior Secretary Yousaf Naseem Khokhar under the Official Secrets Act read with Section 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

Qureshi and his associates have been accused of sharing information contained in the cipher by twisting the facts to achieve their ulterior motives.

The copy of the cipher was “deliberately” kept by the then premier in bad faith and was never returned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Meanwhile, PTI tweeted its vice chairman had been illegally arrested once again. It said Qureshi was taken into custody and taken to the FIA headquarters.

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