On January 18, a judicial magistrate in Karachi acquitted journalist and digital media platform Raftar CEO Farhan Mallick in a case alleging the uploading of anti-state content, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish “any specific allegation in such alleged video which can be termed as anti-state and was used to harm/damage the reputation of any individual”.
Mallick had sought acquittal under Section 249-A of the Criminal Procedure Code before Judicial Magistrate (East) Gulraiz Memon. After hearing arguments from defence counsel Abdul Moiz Jaferii and FIA prosecutor Sheraz Rajpar, the magistrate held that the record did not support continuation of the trial and exercised the court’s authority to acquit at any stage.
In the written order, the magistrate noted that NCCIA technical assistant Irfan Mehar testified that he discovered a video on 7 November 2024 on the YouTube channel ‘Raftar TV’, part of the digital media platform Raftar, tagged with “#zillatrepublicofpakistan”, which he considered anti-state. However, during cross-examination, Mehar stated that the video showed a rush outside a NADRA office and was unable to explain how it could be deemed anti-state or harmful to any dignitary.
The order further observed that Section 26-A of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016—relating to false and fake information—was inserted in 2025. The magistrate pointed out that the alleged video was recorded in November 2024, before the provision came into effect.
The court held that the prosecution had not produced any substantive evidence linking Mallick to content harmful to the state or any person. It stated that no specific allegation had been identified in the video and that the absence of a private complainant or any individual claiming harm weakened the case. The magistrate added that the prosecution had not identified any person affected by the alleged post or tweet.
Mallick, who heads the digital media platform Raftar, was arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency on March 20 and later released on bail. He had been booked under Sections 16, 20, and 26-A of the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act, and under Section 109 of the Pakistan Penal Code. The first FIR, filed by the FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Centre Karachi on 20 March, alleged that Raftar’s YouTube channel was involved in posting anti-state videos targeting unnamed dignitaries. It stated that technical analysis indicated Mallick’s involvement in generating and disseminating posts containing fake news and content that were said to harm the reputations of public institutions internationally.
Following his arrest, Mallick was initially remanded in FIA custody and subsequently placed on a 14-day judicial remand. His bail application before Judicial Magistrate (East) Yusra Ashfaq was dismissed, but was later approved by District and Sessions Judge (East) Dr Chaudhry Wasim Iqbal.
A second FIR was registered on 25 March at the FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Centre on the complaint of Asad Ali, alleging that several individuals involved in the theft of confidential financial data of foreign nationals had claimed to be acting under Mallick’s patronage. Mallick was remanded in FIA custody for five days in this case on 26 March. After securing bail in the first matter, his counsel sought bail before the Judicial Magistrate (Malir) in the second.
