PPF notes that such targeted measures will have a chilling impact on Pakistan’s media even beyond individual journalists like Jan
Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) is alarmed by reports indicating that veteran journalist Matiullah Jan is to be indicted on October 31 in a case against him on narcotics charges. In November 2024, Jan was charged with bizarre terrorism and narcotics charges. The charges levelled against Jan and the way in which he was picked up were alarming, and now, nearly a year later, Jan’s indictment is cause for serious concern.
The targeted measures, particularly through legal measures such as case registration and court proceedings, against vocal voices from the media like Jan, are a dangerous tool that will have a chilling impact on the media, even beyond individual journalists.
On the night of November 27, 2024, Jan was picked up from outside Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad. It then emerged that a criminal complaint, First Information Report (FIR), had been registered in the early hours of November 28 at the Margalla Police Station in the capital by Sub Inspector (SI) Asif Ali under sections of the Pakistan Penal Code, Anti Terrorism Act, and the Control of Narcotics Substances Act.
As per the FIR, the SI was on routine check on E-9 checkpoint on Margalla Road when around 2:15am, a speeding car came from the F-10 area. When they indicated to the car to stop, the driver tried to kill the constables and ran them over, in which one constable, Constable Mudassir, was injured. They tried to stop the car by throwing a plastic barrier in front of it, but the car hit it, broke it, and then stopped. The complainant mentioned that a driver came out from the car and forcefully took the government rifle from Constable Mudassir, pointed it towards them, and started to threaten to kill them. After that, the constables handled him and retrieved the rifle from him. As per the FIR, the driver was identified as Matiullah Jan, who they found was intoxicated. After checking his car in his presence, the FIR stated they found a white shopper under the driving seat, which carried white colored ICE drug (crystal methamphetamine). It was weighed to be 246 grams, from which one gram has been separated for a laboratory test. The rest have been taken into custody. Government rifles and broken barriers were also taken as proof.
Jan was presented before an anti-terrorism court on November 28, which granted two-day physical remand of the journalist. He was released after being granted bail by an Anti Terrorism Court in Islamabad on November 30 against a bond of Rs10,000.
Now, reports suggest that Jan is set to be indicted in the narcotics case on October 31. According to Dawn, an Anti-Terrorism Court in Islamabad handed over case documents to Jan on October 24.
In a post shared on X, Jan reacted: “After 30 years of journalism/Supreme Court reporting, education and being a British @CheveningAA scholar from City University London, I could never imagine how low could our police get 2 [to] defame me for reporting deaths from PIMS hospital on 27/11/24.”
Karachi Press Club President Fazil Jamili strongly condemned the “fabricated drug trafficking case” against Jan. “This is a cooked-up attempt to stop him from his journalistic duties. The government must ensure the safety and security of journalists.”
The Press Association of the Supreme Court also condemned it and demanded that the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Attorney General of Pakistan, and Federal Minister for Interior take immediate notice of the issue and dismiss the case.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expressed concern over Jan’s indictment.
