Journalist Fakharur Rehman sent to jail on judicial remand in Peca case

ISLAMABAD: A local court on Saturday sent journalist Fakharur Rehman to jail on judicial remand after rejecting a request by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for his physical remand in a case registered under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca).

Rehman had been arrested a day earlier. According to an NCCIA inquiry notice dated April 14, he was accused of the dissemination and propagation of false, misleading, intimidating contents through the social media platform X.

He was presented before the court of District Magistrate Yasir Mahmood, where both the prosecution and defence argued over the agency’s request for physical custody.

During the hearing, defence counsel Ahad Khokhar told the court that the prosecution had not clearly shown the extent of the journalist’s alleged involvement. He argued that Rehman had only quoted remarks made by a religious scholar in a post on X and had not offered any personal opinion of his own.

Khokhar further submitted that the video being referred to had been shared by thousands of social media users, and questioned why no action had been taken against the original speaker. He also asked whether the investigation officer had recorded the statement of the cleric whose comments were cited in the post.

The defence lawyer informed the court that Rehman had already replied to the NCCIA notice issued on April 14 and had maintained that he had not spread any false information. He said the journalist had been cooperating with the inquiry and had remained available whenever required.

Opposing the request for physical remand, the defence said Rehman’s mobile phone had already been taken into custody and that no further recovery was pending. Khokhar asked the court to discharge his client from the case.

On the other side, the NCCIA prosecutor argued that Rehman had acknowledged ownership of the social media post but had not shared the password for his mobile phone. The agency said further examination of the device was required and sought his physical remand on that basis.

After hearing both sides, the court declined the request for physical remand and ordered that the journalist be sent to jail on judicial remand.

Peca law under criticism

The Peca law was last amended in January 2025 amid strong opposition from media organisations. Earlier this month, speakers at a programme held in Karachi described Peca as a “black law” and alleged that it was aimed at curbing journalism and weakening freedom of expression.

Last month, the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting held a detailed discussion on the large number of cases being registered under Peca and decided to constitute a subcommittee to review the issue.

In its annual report for 2025, the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) also expressed serious concern over the condition of media freedom in the country, stating that journalists and media organisations were facing punitive actions.