ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) informed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that it had closed the case against former chairman Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Absar Alam.
A single bench of Chief Justice Athar Minallah, on Monday, heard the petition filed by the former chairman PEMRA, who had challenged the FIA summons, issued to him.
During the hearing, the additional attorney general said that the case has been closed after seeking legal opinion in this matter. He also submitted that the FIA's inquiry closure report in the case, saying that it did not fall under section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016.
The additional attorney general then requested the IHC bench to dispose of the matter related to the FIA's call up notice against Alam.
However, the IHC chief justice refused to dispose of the case and connected the matter with other similar petitions to decide the larger question of abuse of power under the PECA.
Later, the court adjourned the hearing until September 27. Alam has filed the petition under Article 199 of Constitution through advocate Sajid Tanoli.
In his petition, the senior journalist and former chairman PEMRA challenged the summons issued to him by the FIA over his recent tweets and social media posts.
The FIA had summoned him on a complaint filed by a lawyer who accused him of anti-state rhetoric.
Absar; however, challenged the summons and contended that the FIA summoned him without providing details of the complaint.
He said that the summons were issued even after the date on which he was supposed to appear before the investigation officer.
He termed the summon malafide and requested the court to declare it as illegal and unlawful.
He also prayed before the court to direct the FIA not to harass, humiliate, threat or arrest him in connection with the complaint lodged by a lawyer with the investigative agency.
The Cyber Crime Reporting Centre of the FIA had issued notice to the former chairman Pemra regarding a complaint that he had uploaded defamatory tweets against the State individuals, and departments through his Twitter account. The former chairman adopted that he highlighted human rights violations through his Twitter handle and tried to defend the aggrieved and deprived segments of the society, and also for the supremacy of the Constitution and the Rule of Law.
He argued that through notices, the respondents were trying to harass, humiliate, blackmail, and arrest him illegally, unlawfully, without due process of law, and that the same was part of the campaign of silencing sane voices.
He informed the court that time and again, he requested the SHO to provide him a copy of complaint, evidence, and material, if any, so that he may furnish his defense but the SHO flatly refused to provide any document to him.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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