Physical remand of Raoof, 8 other suspects extended by 3 days

ISLAMABAD. On completion of a two-day physical remand, Judicial Magistrate Muhammad Shabbir Bhatti extended physical remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Information Secretary Raoof Hasan and eight other accused for another three days.

Raoof was arrested on Monday during a raid, conducted by the Islamabad police and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on PTI’s central office in a case registered under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016. The FIA had sought a 10-day physical remand.

The FIA had seized a computer and other items. It alleged that the digital media cell at the PTI office had become a hub for international disinformation, where anti-Pakistan propaganda was being spread in collaboration with the enemy agencies.

On Thursday, the FIA prosecutor requested for extension in physical remand of Raoof and other accused for eight more days, arguing that the accused were active in 100 WhatsApp groups and more time was needed for extracting information from them. He stated that Raoof headed both international and national media cells, and Jibran Ilyas had previously worked with a foreign president.

Twelve individuals, including Raoof Hasan, were booked by the FIA cybercrime wing under sections 9 (glorification of an offence), 10 (cyberterrorism) and 11 (electronic forgery) of PECA.

Two women named in the case, Farhat Khalid and Iqra Ilyas, had already been remanded into judicial custody. The 12 suspects in the FIR also included Janjua who had been arrested last week. Nine suspects, excluding two women and Janjua, were presented before Magistrate Shabbir on Thursday, where Ali Bukhari and Latif Khosa appeared as Raoof Hasan’s counsel, while Imran Feroze Malik was the FIA prosecutor.

“The FIA investigation officer (IO) sought another eight-day physical remand of the suspects for “investigation, seizure of social media accounts, further analysis to ascertain their links and relations with other SMT members of PTI throughout the globe”, the court order said.

The order cited a 2023 Islamabad High Court judgement, which stressed that the “power of remanding the accused to police custody must be exercised with great caution.

Hence, for completion of investigation and for the above purpose, the request of the IO is partially allowed,” it read.

The sessions court, allowing three-day remand “subject to pre- and post-medical examination of accused”, directed the FIA to present the suspects again on July 28 (Sunday).

At the outset of the hearing, the FIA prosecutor informed the court that “social media accounts have not been recovered yet” and that a Gmail account was yet to be logged into.

“Paid individuals are running WhatsApp groups, which include people from abroad. Fake accounts have been recovered from the suspects’ mobile phones,” Malik claimed.

Asserting that Raoof Hasan heads and directs the PTI social media team, the FIA official said, “Campaigns are run against the judiciary and the administration. Jibran Ilyas is working from abroad.

“We only have one technical expert. Therefore, more time is required,” the prosecutor explained, arguing that after PECA was amended, remand of accused up to 30 days could be granted.

However, PTI’s Khosa questioned the “quality” of the current “Form-47 government”. “This government is concerned about the realities being disclosed. The entire world is saying this,” he said.

“It is my right to criticise the government and talk about the theft of your (people’s) rights,” the senior lawyer asserted, arguing that the sections cited in the case were not applicable and “no allegation was proven”.

Noting that the judiciary’s role was to protect people’s rights, Khosa urged the court to discharge the suspects from the case.

About Raoof Hasan, he said the PTI leader was a “cancer patient and had served the country for 75 years”. He asked if anyone was arrested in the case over an attempt on Raoof Hasan’s life in May.

PTI counsel Bukhari asked what was to be recovered from the receptionist and the office guard who, he said, had also been arrested. “What do they aim to achieve by detaining people? They already have [their] mobile phones. If they want to have laboratory tests done, then take the blood samples,” he suggested.

Addressing concerns over not having arrest warrants, the FIA prosecutor argued, “The law shows leniency in this matter. If there are risks of suspects fleeing, then they can be arrested without warrants.”

He added that the aim of securing remand was not just recovery of a few things but investigation. The special prosecutor insisted: “We are not saying that we want them to be punished. We want investigations to be conducted.”

After both sides presented their arguments, the magistrate reserved his verdict and shortly after announced it, granting the FIA further physical remand of the nine suspects for three days.