ISLAMABAD: The federal government has formed a five-member joint investigation team to investigate an organized anti-state social media campaign.
Established under Section 30 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016, the JIT will be led by the Islamabad police chief and will include two senior officials from the Federal Investigation Agency.
Other members of the committee consist of the FIA’s Director of Cybercrime, the Director of the Counter-Terrorism Wing, the Deputy Inspector General (Investigation), and the Senior Superintendent of Police (Counter Terrorism Department).
According to a notification issued by the Ministry of Interior on July 26, the JIT will “investigate and determine the organized objectives of the accused and their accomplices who have created chaos and disorder in Pakistan through malicious social media campaigns.” The team is also responsible for identifying and prosecuting the individuals involved in accordance with applicable laws. Additional co-opted members may be included in the JIT as needed.
This development follows the recent establishment of special courts by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led government to expedite trials of cases under the PECA. The Law Ministry’s notification granted additional district and sessions judges, along with civil judges from East and West, the authority to conduct trials in these special courts.
Furthermore, the government, which has repeatedly voiced concerns over anti-state content online, is reportedly trialing an internet firewall that will filter and block unwanted content from reaching the public. This firewall will also help identify the locations from which propaganda is being disseminated.
Sources have previously indicated that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Information Secretary Raoof Hasan and others may be tried under the PECA. Hasan was arrested by Islamabad police on Monday and is currently in FIA custody after a court granted a three-day extension to his physical remand.
He, along with 11 other members of the party’s media cell, has been booked by the FIA for allegedly operating a digital media cell involved in spreading anti-Pakistan propaganda. The charges against the twelve suspects—two of whom are women—include sections 9 (glorification of an offense), 10 (cyber-terrorism), and 11 (hate speech) of the PECA.
The suspects are Ahmad Waqas Janjua, Hasan, Afaq Ahmed Alvi, Hameedullah, Rashid Mahmood, Zeeshan Farooq, Syed Osama, Mohammad Rizwan Afzal, Mohammad Rafiq, Syed Hamza, Farhat Khalid, and Iqra.
The FIR, filed on the complaint of CTD Inspector Sajid Ikram, states that the individuals involved have employed various tactics on social media to undermine Pakistan’s integrity and disrupt law and order. It further alleges that members of the media cell were directed by Hasan to incite the public against the state and the military, aiming to create chaos.
