Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) expresses concern over the arrest of freelance journalist Muhammad Aslam Shah by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) and the delay in the hearing of his post-arrest bail plea.
Shah’s arrest was reported on January 6. This came after a First Information Report was registered at the NCCIA Karachi on December 29 against Aslam Shah by a complainant, Tabish Raza Husnain, who, according to Dawn, was an official of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation. The case was registered under Sections 20 and 24 of Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act 2025.
According to the complainant, Shah was involved in “defamation propaganda” against him and his senior Colonel Anjum in Facebook and WhatsApp groups. The complainant alleged that Shah had been making “false and baseless allegations” and using abusive language, which was causing distress and damage to his reputation.
As per the FIR report, several notices were issued to Shah to appear and record his statement and clarify his position, but he had “willfully avoided” participating in the enquiry.
Following his arrest, Shah was presented before the Judicial Magistrate (South), Karachi, on January 7 and sent to prison on judicial remand.
Shah’s legal counsel, Advocate Nasir Ahmed, filed a post-arrest bail application. It stated that Shah was protected under Section 7 of the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act 2021 (protection from abusive, violent and intolerant behaviour).
Speaking to PPF, Ahmed confirmed that the bail hearing, originally scheduled for January 10, was rescheduled to January 12, as the NCCIA failed to submit the required documents to the court.
During the bail hearing on January 12, an NCCIA official informed the court that the investigating officer was on leave and that the prosecution did not have the case file; therefore, the official requested an adjournment till January 14. The court accepted this request.
The Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) has strongly condemned Shah’s arrest, describing it as a violation of the fundamental right to freedom of expression. In a joint statement, KUJ President Tahir Hassan Khan and General Secretary Sardar Liaquat Kashmiri said that the use of the PECA against a journalist for critical reporting is an attempt to restrict press freedom and undermine the role of independent media. The union emphasised that dissenting opinion and investigative journalism are not crimes and stressed that it is the state’s responsibility to protect journalists rather than harass them. KUJ has demanded an investigation into the circumstances of Shah’s arrest, called for his immediate release, and a broader review of PECA and other laws being used to curtail press freedom.
PPF reiterates its long-standing position that defamation should be treated as a civil, not a criminal, offence, in line with international trends in defamation law.
