LAHORE: Former deputy speaker of the National Assembly Qasim Khan Suri has approached the Lahore High Court against the notices issued to him by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on a complaint of journalist Saleem Safi for allegedly using abusive language against him on Tweet.

The petitioner Suri through his counsel contended that the FIA issued him call up notices on a complaint of Safi for the alleged offence under the Electronic Crime Act 2016 which he did not commit.

The petitioner said he shared his political views in a tweet, which could not be treated as an offence. He said the FIA issued the impugned notices purely on political grounds at the behest of the federal government.

He asked the court to set aside the notices issued by the FIA for being illegal.

The FIA on January 2 issued a notice to Suri summoning him for Jan 11 but he skipped his appearance. Later the agency issued another notice asking him to appear before it on January 18.

Safi had filed the complaint accusing the former deputy speaker of using abusive language against him and his family members.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023