Copy of diplomatic cypher 'missing' from PM House record

Copy of diplomatic cypher 'missing' from PM House record

Islamabad (Staff Report/Agencies): The federal cabinet on Friday noted that the copy of the diplomatic cypher was missing from the records of the Prime Minister’s House.

A meeting of the cabinet under the chair of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif accused former prime minister Imran Khan of sacrificing key national interests for political gains by giving fictitious meaning to a diplomatic cypher, claiming the ex-premier has violated his oath and the “Official Secrets Act”. The meeting also formed a special committee to determine legal action against all those allegedly involved, including Imran Khan, ex-principal secretary to PM Azam Khan and senior ministers of the then PTI government, saying the copy was property of the PM House.

“The cipher is missing from the official record of Prime Minister House but is available with the Foreign Office,” confirmed Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb.

Earlier, after an audio recording of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders leaked on September 28, another recording emerged, supposedly a continuation of the conversation in the previous recording, featuring who are believed to be PTI leaders Asad Umar and Shah Mahmood Qureshi discussing the "foreign conspiracy" cypher with the former premier Imran Khan and ex-principal secretary Azam Khan.

In the audio, the PTI chief's voice can be heard, apparently stating that “we have to hold a meeting tomorrow, you and the three of us (Imran, Qureshi and Azam Khan) and the foreign secretary”.

The voice, believed to be of Imran Khan's, is heard saying that “In the meeting, we have to quietly tell them to write the minutes of the meeting”, adding that Azam Khan had said that the meeting minutes should be drafted and photocopied.

The second voice, supposedly of Azam Khan's, asks if “this cypher arrived on the 7th or 8th," before saying that "it came on the 8th”.