A judicial magistrate in Islamabad granted the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) three-day physical remand of journalist Bilal Ghauri in a case concerning the alleged dissemination of false information registered against him under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA).
The First Information Report (FIR), registered on September 6 on behalf of the state by NCCIA Technical Assistant Muhammad Umair Warsi, cited violations of Sections 20 and 26-A of PECA, concerning offences against a person’s dignity and the dissemination of false information.
According to the FIR, on September 5, Ghauri posted content allegedly questioning the process and circumstances of the appointment of National Counter Terrorism Authority’s (Nacta) head.
As per the FIR, Ghauri had “intentionally created, uploaded, transmitted and disseminated the false narratives through social media platforms.”
During proceedings on September 7, before Judicial Magistrate Malik Aman, where Ghauri was produced, the NCCIA sought a 10-day remand to investigate the case and recover related accounts on platforms including YouTube and X.
Defence counsel Advocate Imran Shafiq opposed the request, arguing that Ghauri was arrested without prior notice and that “not a single statement” in the vlog uploaded by Ghauri could be termed as false or fabricated. According to Dawn, Ghauri said his remarks were not about an individual but regarding NACTA and its performance.
