ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Azam Swati was released on Tuesday from jail after he was granted bail by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a case registered against him by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for controversial tweets against senior military officers.

The IHC on Monday last granted Swati bail against surety bonds of Rs 200,000 but he could not be released. As per the procedure, the trial court issued the release order for Swati following it received the IHC’s written order and the PTI leader’s surety bonds.

The PTI senators and party workers carrying party flags gathered outside the Crime Intelligence Agency (CIA) building of the capital police which was declared sub-jail by the district administration on November 4, 2022, at the time of the release of Swati to express solidarity with him.

Swati after his release thanked his party leaders and workers. He said that the PTI chairman Imran Khan has said that this country is mine and the army is mine so it is important to support Khan to save the country.

The agency arrested Swati for the second time on November 27 from his farmhouse in Chak Shahzad for controversial tweets against senior military officials.

An FIR against Swati was registered by the FIA Cyber Crime Wing on November 26 over “controversial” tweets he had posted. The FIR was registered on the complaint of the state through Islamabad Cyber Crime Reporting Centre Technical Assistant Aneesur Rehman.

It was registered under Section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crime Act (PECA) 2016, which deals with offences against the dignity of a person as well as Sections 131 (abetting mutiny or attempting to seduce a soldier from his duty), 500 (punishment for defamation), 501 (defamation and printing of content deemed defamatory), Section 505 (statement conducing to public mischief) and 109 (abetment) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023