LAHORE: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has strongly rebuked recent remarks made by US diplomat Donald Lu, denouncing them as false and deceptive, and has demanded an open trial regarding the cypher case.
In a press conference held on Thursday, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan addressed the media, asserting that PTI founder Imran Khan has urged former envoy to the US Asad Majeed to clarify his position on Lu’s statement.
According to Gohar, Khan declared Lu’s deviation from his initial testimony before Congress as misleading, alleging a conspiracy against PTI’s democratically elected government, which was ousted through a vote of no-confidence in 2022.
Barrister Gohar challenged Lu’s denial of his previous statement, urging Majeed to reaffirm his stance in response to Lu’s testimony, citing prior discussions between the two parties. He criticised Lu’s apparent diversion during a congressional hearing, where he purportedly spent minimal time addressing the cypher issue and instead shifted focus to unrelated matters.
Highlighting Lu’s comments regarding the general elections on February 8, Barrister Gohar underscored the diplomat’s assertion that the United States had never endorsed Pakistani elections as ‘free and fair.’ Consequently, he called for a thorough investigation into any irregularities in the electoral process.
PTI Information Secretary Raoof Hasan highlighted the Pakistan Democratic Movement’s (PDM) evolving stance on the cypher issue. He said despite initially denying its existence, PDM later acknowledged violations of the Official Secret Act within the cypher case, despite the cabinet’s declassification of the document. Hassan noted that Lu’s testimony supported the reality of the cypher, despite his reluctance to acknowledge its content.
Expanding on this, Hasan referenced two National Security Council meetings convened to discuss the cypher, during which it was decided to issue formal demarches to the US government in Islamabad and Washington. Meeting minutes, he claimed, provided evidence of significant interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs.
Hasan emphasised that the contents of the cypher were no longer confidential, having been reported in the international press. He aligned with Imran Khan’s consistent stance, stressing the disparity between the ongoing secretive trial against Khan within the cypher and the public hearings in the US Congress.
Expressing concern, Khalid Khurshid highlighted the disparity between Pakistan’s prohibition on discussing the cypher and the US Congress’s open hearings on the matter. Calling for an open trial in Pakistan, Khurshid underscored the need to investigate allegations of foreign interference. He expressed confidence in the judiciary’s ability to ensure justice, maintaining Khan’s innocence amidst his incarceration.
