Caretaker Interior Minister Sarfaraz Bugti said that he does not know for sure if former Prime Minister Imran Khan is being tried under the old Official Secrets Act or the amended law.

Speaking in an exclusive interview in Faisla Aap Ka, Sarfaraz Bugti said that the matter of the cipher has been under investigation since it first emerged around the time of the no-confidence vote against Imran Khan.

He said that the court of law had to decide the matter and Wednesday’s hearing was a ‘routine’ practice.

Bugti said that the decision to hold hearings in the Attock jail had been taken keeping in view the Official Secrets Act, as well as the security of the accused as well as the judges and lawyers.

When asked if the new Official Secrets Act or the old one was being used to prosecute Imran Khan, Bugti said he had no exact knowledge of the situation. However, he said that since the act had became law, the trial was probably proceeding under the new law.

He also added that decisions often get late and he was not sure that the trial would be completed in the mandatory 30 days.

When asked if the missing copy of the cipher was still missing, Bugti said that it was Khan’s official position but the former prime minister was prone to taking u-turns.

Bugti said that there was no concept of organised political violence in Pakistan before May 9. He said that the protests had targeted the institutions that were considered nucleus of Pakistan.

Describing the events as ‘heinous’ he said that women and men had to be treated as equal before the law.

When asked if repeated judicial remands for women were as per lawy, Bugti said that the matter had to be decided by the the courts.

Bugti said that there was no solid evidence to sugest May 9 was a conspiracy against the army, but there was alot of circumstantial evidence to that effect.

He added that the PTM protest in Islamabad had been announced on the very day he took oath, but instead of pelting them with tear gas they negotiated for seven hours.

Bugti said that the agreement with PTM allowed them to hold a rally on the outskirts of Islamabad. He added that PTM leaders had agreed that no anti-state slogans would be raised and no activists from other parties would be allowed to use the stage either.

He said that ‘unfortunately’ anti-state slogans had been raised. He added that such slogans could not be permitted under the law. regarding controversial FIRs, he said that first complaints could be filed by anyone and can include any charges.

Bugti said that he personally wished that PTM should organise itself politically. He said that the PTM should negotiate for their grievances instead of ‘heroism’ that leads to more Pashtun suffering.