ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday suspended police physical custody of senior journalist Matiullah Jan in a case registered against him on multiple charges under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) and the Control of Narcotic Substances Act (CNSA) and different sections of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

The FIR was registered on November 28 at the Margalla police station of Islamabad. The allegations against the journalist included the sale and purchase of narcotics, obstruction of public servants and other serious offences.

During the initial hearing, the petitioner’s counsel Riasat Ali Azad, the president Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA), argued that the remand order was issued without proper legal justification.

“The FIR does not explicitly mention allegations of drug trafficking, yet the physical remand was granted on this basis,” the counsel contended.

He said the order contradicted established judicial precedents regarding physical custody.

The court had taken up the petition noting the urgency of the matter, after overruling technical objections raised by the court office and directing the immediate numbering of the petition.

The IHC division bench, comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Arbab Mohammad Tahir, suspended the contested remand order and placed the journalist under judicial custody until the matter is fully heard.

The case has been scheduled for further proceedings before a division bench on December 2. The court order enabled the counsel to file a post-arrest bail plea for Matiullah Jan.

Earlier, an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) handed Mr Jan over to police following his arrest on Nov 26.

As per the FIR, the journalist was booked under Section 9(2)4 of the CNSA (possessing or trafficking ‘more than 100g and up to 500g’ of psychotropic substance) and Section 7 (punishment for acts of terrorism) of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997.

The FIR claimed that Mr Jan was in possession of the narcotic methamphetamine (crystal meth) when his vehicle was reportedly stopped at a checkpoint at Sector E-9. It claimed that Mr Jan ‘rammed the vehicle’ into the cops, injuring constable Mudassir.

“When the car stopped at the security barrier, Mr Jan stepped out and ‘assaulted’ a cop, snatched his weapon and pointed it back at the cop,” the FIR said.

However, his legal team maintained that Mr Jan was being targeted because of his reporting of the PTI protest and police action against them.

Amnesty International, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists have condemned Mr Jan’s arrest and sought his immediate release.

The Association of Electronic Media Editors and News Directors termed the charges against him ‘absurd’, saying that the accusations represent a ‘new tactic against journalists’. Mr Jan’s ‘arbitrary detention’ on ‘trumped up charges’ was ‘an affront on the right to freedom of expression and media freedom,’ Amnesty International said in a post on X.

The Committee to Protect Journalists also noted that the police action followed Mr Jan’s ‘coverage of protests’ by PTI supporters.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2024