ISLAMABAD: A special court, on Tuesday, extended interim bail of former federal minister Asad Umar in the cypher case till September 14.
The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) judge, Abul Hasnaat Muhammad Zulqarnain, who has been appointed as the judge of the special court that will hear the cases registered under the Official Secrets Act from across the country, while hearing the case, extended interim bail of Umar. The court ordered Umar to join the investigation.
Umar’s counsel Babar Awan and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) special prosecutor Zulfiqar Naqvi appeared before the court.
During the previous hearing, the former minister filed a bail application through his counsel Babar Awan and Sardar Masroof.
Cypher’s case against my client has been registered on political grounds, Awan told the court. The main objective of registering the cypher case was to harass and blackmail his client, he said, adding that cypher case is baseless and fabricated. He said the client is ready to join the investigation.
He requested the court to approve his bail application.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023