ISLAMABAD
\nA court in the federal capital on Sunday handed over Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf\u2019s (PTI) Information Secretary Raoof Hasan and other suspects for two more days to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for their alleged involvement in disseminating anti-state propaganda. Hasan, who was arrested by Islamad Police on Monday, was handed over to the FIA on a two-day remand on Tuesday. Subsequently, a court then approved a three-day extension in his physical remand along with other PTI workers.
\nPTI\u2019s information secretary, along with several other PTI\u2019s media cell members have been booked by the FIA regarding their involvement in a digital media cell and its alleged involvement in running anti-Pakistan propaganda.
\nIn its FIR, the FIA stated that while probing PTI activist Ahmad Waqas Janjua, the suspect revealed that he, along with the party\u2019s leadership and media cell members were involved in alleged anti-state propaganda. The charges against the 12 suspects \u2014 two of whom are women \u2014 include the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act\u2019s sections 9 (glorification of an offence), 10 (cyber-terrorism), and 11 (hate speech).
\nThe suspects are Waqas, PTI\u2019s top leader Hasan, Afaq Ahmed Alvi, Hameedullah, Rashid Mahmood, Zeeshan Farooq, Syed Osama, Mohammad Rizwan Afzal, Mohammad Rafiq, Syed Hamza, Farhat Khalid, and Iqra.
\n\u201c…by employing various tactics on social media, [these people are] trying to hurt the integrity of Pakistan as well as sabotage the law and order situation,\u201d the FIR, filed on the complaint of CTD Inspector Sajid Ikram, read.
\nIkram said that Janjua told his interrogators that the media cell members, with internal and external help, also damage the country\u2019s integrity on a daily basis.
\nThe FIR mentions that media cell members take directions from Hasan every day to make the people go up against the state and the army in a bid to create a chaotic situation.
\nHasan refutes \u2018baseless\u2019 allegations
\nPresenting Hasan and other suspects before Duty Judge Mureed Abbas\u2019s court, the FIA prosecutor sought a further eight-day physical remand of Hasan, stressing that the agency cannot carry out the investigation if they are not granted custody of the PTI official.
\nNoting that the FIA can seek a remand of up to 30 days under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), 2016, he said that the transcript of anti-state videos has also been added to the case record.
\nOn the judge\u2019s question whether Hasan had received a visa or a ticket from India, the prosecutor responded in the affirmative and said that the PTI official had received a ticket from the neighbouring country.
\nJudicial Magistrate then asked Hasan if he had travelled to India and whether he acknowledged his chat with a person named Rahul.
\nAt this, the PTI\u2019s information secretary said that Rahul lives in the United Kingdom and invited him as a guest speaker in Bahrain in December 2023.
\nPresenting his arguments, Hasan\u2019s lawyer Shoaib Shaheen said that a person cannot be considered a criminal simply for being part of a WhatsApp group.
\n\u201cAt least PTI workers should be discharged from the case,\u201d said Shaheen.
\nSpeaking in the court, Hasan maintained that the case in which he has been arrested doesn\u2019t fall under his domain as the PTI\u2019s information secretary.
\n\u201cMy responsibility is to deal with electronic media […] Zulfi Bukhari handles international media,\u201d he said while terming allegations levelled against him as \u201cbaseless\u201d.
\nAfter arguments from both sides, the court then approved an extension of the suspect\u2019s physical remand by two days. However, it dismissed the request for PTI worker Syeda Arooba\u2019s physical remand and ordered for her to be sent to jail on judicial remand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD A court in the federal capital on Sunday handed over Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf\u2019s (PTI) Information Secretary Raoof Hasan and other suspects for two more days to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for their alleged involvement in disseminating anti-state propaganda. Hasan, who was arrested by Islamad Police on Monday, was handed over to the FIA on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-421287","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n