KARACHI: A district and sessions court in Karachi dismissed the bail application of journalist Farhan Mallick in Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) violation case.
The Judicial Magistrate (East) was hearing the bail petition filed by the journalist, who was arrested for allegedly spreading anti-state content.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) took the journalist into custody on March 20 for allegedly violating the Peca and involvement in defamation.
The contentious Peca law was recently amended, and journalist bodies across the country have been protesting the law, dubbing it an attempt to gag freedom of speech and intimidate newspersons and their media outlets.
An FIR was lodged against Mallick under multiple sections of the Peca Act read with Pakistan Penal Code's Section 190 (punishment of abetment if the act abetted is committed in consequence and where no express provision is made for its punishment) and 500 (punishment for defamation).
The FIR mentioned that Mallick, who worked for a private news channel as its director news and now owns a YouTube channel, was allegedly involved in disseminating anti-state content.
"During the course of inquiry, initial technical analysis of the alleged YouTube Channel was received, which revealed that the alleged person is involved in generating and disseminating posts and videos related to anti-state, consisting of fake news and public incitement agenda," the FIR mentioned.
"He has [been] continuously disseminating and uploading posts and videos related to anti-state, consist of fake news and public incitement agenda, thereby causing harm to the reputation of public institutes on an international level which acts on his part constitute the commission of offence."
The local court hearing took place a day after the administration of Mallick's YouTube channel claimed that the FIA had raided the journalist's office, seizing his computer and USB drive.
The administration stated that the raid was not part of routine investigations but an attack on press freedom.
A local court on March 25 sent Mallick to jail on judicial remand, rejecting the FIA's request for extension in physical remand.
After the expiry of his four-day physical remand, the FIA had presented the senior journalist before the Judicial Magistrate (East), seeking an extension to the remand.
However, the court rejected the FIA’s request for his physical remand and instead sent Mallick — who worked for a private news channel as its director news and now owns a YouTube channel — to jail on judicial remand.
Mallick's is not the first arrest under the amended Peca law. The Rawalpindi Police on March 19 registered the first case under the Peca against a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activist on the charges of spreading misinformation and negative propaganda.
The case was filed following a social media post that was allegedly based on misinformation. According to a police spokesman, the suspect, identified as Muhammad Rehan, was arrested for posting inappropriate content online.
