- June 5, 2024
- Kainat Shakeel
- 0
PTI leaders were called in by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to testify about the party’s social media activity. The Islamabad High Court granted the FIA permission to record their remarks on Wednesday but cautioned against harassing the leaders. Regarding the “misuse” of PTI founder Imran Khan’s X account while he was detained for spreading “incendiary content” against state institutions, the FIA had called in PTI leaders Barrister Gohar and Omar Ayub, as well as party spokesperson Raoof Hasan. Imran posted a video and a comment on May 26 via his official account. The quote said, “Every Pakistani should study the Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report and get to know who was the true traitor, General Yahya Khan or Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.”
Using allegations of crimes carried out by the Pakistani military during the civil war, the video made the case that the former military dictator was to blame for the nation’s dissolution. The film purportedly stole the party’s mandate from the general elections and also included images of the existing military and civilian leadership. The PTI’s Hassan and Gohar, the petitioners, claimed they had nothing to do with the aforementioned X account and were not even running it, by a court ruling that was issued today and a copy of which is accessible on Dawn.com. According to the petition, the FIA did not have authority over the issue of the contested notice. It stated, “The Cybercrime Reporting Center’s proceedings are not immune to legal challenges.” The petitioners were directed by the court to appear before the relevant authority and provide a statement. The order stated that until the next hearing date, respondents were not allowed to harass the petitioners and no negative action may be taken against them.
In a separate statement, IHC stated that reporters were permitted to cover court hearings but made it clear that careless reporting was the issue. A journalistic organization applied to overturn the ban on court reporting, citing worries over dramatic headlines. IHC Chief Justice Justice Aamer Farooq heard the case. According to CJ IHC, there was no restriction on media coverage of court proceedings. He asked if there was any relationship between this problem and the federal government. “The federal government is not involved in this matter; it was a Pemra matter,” the extra attorney general declared.