ISLAMABAD: A special court, while expressing anger over the prosecution’s request for granting time for presenting their arguments in the bail plea of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Azam Khan Swati in a case registered against him over an alleged controversial tweet, directed them to be ready for arguments on Thursday (today).

Senior Civil Judge Muhammad Shabbir, while hearing Swati’s bail application expressed annoyance over the request of prosecutor, Rizwan Abbasi, for granting him more time to prepare arguments in the controversial tweet case and asked him to present his arguments on Thursday (today).

Swati filed a bail application before the court after he was sent to jail on judicial remand on Monday last.

The PTI leader was arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cybercrime Wing from his home in Islamabad on October 13 and a case was registered against him later over the controversial tweets.

Swati’s counsel, Babar Awan, while arguing before the court over the bail application, read out the first information report (FIR). In the FIR, the agency has considered his client’s tweet against Pakistan’s integrity, he said.

Awan further said that the tweet was posted at 7pm and the FIR was registered at 1am, when and where the agency conducted the inquiry? The whole action has been taken in around three to four hours but the agency has not intimated the suspect, he said.

How the FIA can arrest a person without an inquiry, he asked.

He said that the tweet was posted at 7:00 and at 1:00 a person has become a complainant in the case.

As per the procedure, the agency first issues a notice and then registers FIR but in this case, the agency arrested his client without an inquiry, he said.

The defence counsel said that a statement given by any political figure cannot impact Pakistan's armed forces.

He said that the chief justice remarked during a case that a single tweet cannot harm the institutions of Pakistan.

The judge told Awan to focus on the non-bailable clauses in the case and not on the bailable ones.

The judge asked Abbasi to present his argument after Awan completed his argument. However, he requested the court to grant him more time for preparing his argument.

The judge was annoyed and told the prosecutor that you are not a child who needs to be given time for preparation and asked to be ready on Thursday.

The court directed him to present his arguments during the next hearing to be held today (Thursday).

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022