ISLAMABAD / KARACHI: An Islamabad judge on Thursday extended the judicial remand of PTI Senator Azam Swati for two weeks in the ‘controversial tweets’ case.

Meanwhile, the Sindh High Court (SHC) has ordered the police to cancel all FIRs registered against Mr Swati in the province.

While extending the remand, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Judicial Magistrate Mohammad Shabbir Bhatti directed the investigation officer to submit the challan in two weeks.

Mr Swati, who is incarcerated in Sindh, joined the proceeding through a video link.

At the onset of the hearing, the judge asked Babar Awan, the counsel for Mr Swati, if his client had been granted post-arrest bail by a trial court.

Warns prosecution to submit challan on next hearing; SHC orders cancellation of ‘identical’ FIRs in Sindh

Mr Awan said the prosecution was granted time on their request and then the federal government transferred him to Sindh.

When asked about the progress of the case, the investigation officer said the prosecution was awaiting a technical report from Twitter management. He said challan will be filed after the report.

The judge warned him to submit challan on the next date, otherwise his salary will be stopped. Further proceedings were adjourned for two weeks.

SHC orders cancellation of FIRs

The SHC on Thursday gave the police three days to cancel all FIRs registered against Mr Swati in the province.

The order was issued after Sindh police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon apprised the court that all FIRs lodged against the PTI senator were identical to the one registered in Islamabad.

The two-judge bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, passed the order while disposing of applications filed by the senator’s son, Usman Swati to restrain the police from arresting his father and quash cases against him.

The order noted that lodging more than one FIRs in a similar case was a violation of the Supreme Court’s order in ‘Mst Sughran Bibi vs The State’ case.

“The Inspector General of Police stated in court that all the FIRs in Sindh in respect of Muhammad Azam Swati with regard to similar offences will be disposed of in “C” [cancel] Class keeping in view the case of Mst. Sughran Bibi (Supra). He shall ensure that he does the same within three days from the date of this order,” the bench said in its order.

Mr Swati’s counsel stated that he was satisfied with the development and requested the court to dispose of the petitions filed by the senator’s son.

After the hearing, Sindh Prosecutor General Dr Faiz Shah told media persons that the process has been started to cancel 34 cases registered against Mr Swati in Sindh.

Mr Swati was moved to Sindh from Balochistan on Dec 9 and has since been in the custody of Qambar Shah­dadkot police. The PTI leader was arrested by the FIA on Nov 27 over “strongly worded tweets” against senior military officials.

He was later shifted to Quetta when an Islamabad judicial magistrate handed over his custody to the Balochistan police after five cases were registered against him in the province.

After those cases were quashed by the Balochistan High Court, the senator was taken into custody by Sindh police in connection with FIRs registered in the province.

During the last hearing on Dec 12, the SHC had directed the Sindh IG and prosecutor general to go through all the FIRs and see if they were materially different from the case already lodged in Islamabad.

The court had also summoned the record of all cases registered against Mr Swati and stopped the police from arresting him in any more cases.

Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2022