ISLAMABAD: Journalist Waheed Murad was presented before an Islamabad court by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Wednesday and was remanded in two-day physical custody under the country’s cybercrime laws for allegedly posting “intimidating content” online.
Family Alleges ‘Forcible Disappearance’
Murad’s family had earlier filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), claiming he was forcibly taken from his home in Sector G-8, Islamabad, by unknown individuals, suspected to be from intelligence agencies. His mother-in-law, Abida Nawaz, filed the plea through lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha, stating that she was an eyewitness to the abduction and was also manhandled by the abductors, who seized her phone.
The state, the defence ministry, the Islamabad police chief, and the Karachi Company police station’s SHO were listed as respondents. The petition urged the IHC to trace and produce Murad, investigate those responsible, and disclose any charges against him.
FIA’s Cybercrime Case Against Murad
It later emerged that an FIR was registered against Murad by the FIA’s Cyber Crime Reporting Centre under multiple sections of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, including:
- Section 9: Glorification of an offence
- Section 10: Cyber-terrorism
- Section 20: Malicious code
- Section 26A: Punishment for false and fake information
The FIA accused Murad of sharing highly intimidating content online, allegedly spreading fake, misleading, and misinterpreted information that incited hatred against government officials.
Murad’s Alleged Link to Enforced Disappearance Cases
Murad had recently raised concerns about the alleged enforced disappearance of journalist Ahmad Noorani’s two brothers. His lawyer, Imaan Mazari, stated that the pattern of his abduction mirrored past incidents, emphasizing that the method used made it “clear who they are.”
