A judicial magistrate in Karachi on Tuesday remanded television host Iqrarul Hassan into the custody of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for four days. The court order was issued after Iqrar ul Hassan was arrested over allegations of publishing defamatory, false, and anti-state material on his official social media platforms.
The federal cybercrime agency registered a case against the media figure under sections 9, 10, 24, and 26-A of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), Pakistan's primary legal framework for regulating digital communications and computer-related offences. Officials stated that the investigation focuses on content shared across his digital accounts, where he has regularly voiced criticism regarding official government policies.
PECA Charges and Court Proceedings
During the hearing at the Karachi East judicial complex, NCCIA investigators requested physical remand to interrogate the broadcaster regarding his social media publications. The presiding magistrate granted the agency four days of physical custody to carry out their probe into the Iqrar ul Hassan arrest case.
Dawn reported that he was booked under sections 9, 10, 24 and 26-A of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act. The agency said the posts were anti-state, false and defamatory. It did not describe the posts further.
Midnight Detention in Lahore
The Karachi court appearance follows an overnight operation at Hassan's residence in Lahore. His family confirmed that plainclothes personnel entered their Defence Housing Authority (DHA) home at approximately 3:00 am on Monday and took him into custody.
In a video statement, his wife Farah Iqrar stated that the raiding team forcibly entered through the main gate and manhandled her during the encounter. She noted that the individuals seized electronic devices, including two mobile phones belonging to Hassan, his laptop, and her own phone, adding that a masked woman in the group wore an NCCIA identification badge.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari subsequently clarified that provincial police had not detained Hassan and that authorities were looking into the circumstances surrounding the raid.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Anchorperson Iqrarul Hassan ko cybercrime ke qanoon Peca ke tehat giriftar kar liya gaya hai. Karachi ki adalat ne unhein chaar din ke liye NCCIA ki tehweel mein de diya hai. Un par social media par riyasat ke khilaf aur jhoota mawad share karne ka ilzam lagaya gaya hai.
