NCCIA arrests 13 in Punjab over alleged anti-state social media activity

LAHORE: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has arrested 13 people from different cities of Punjab in what it described as a province-wide operation against alleged anti-state activity on social media.

An NCCIA spokesperson said the action was carried out over the last couple of weeks and was launched on the instructions of NCCIA Punjab Director Muhammad Ali Waseem, who recently assumed charge.

According to the spokesperson, those taken into custody were allegedly involved in running an online campaign against the state, particularly the army and government officials, across multiple social media platforms. He added that two of the suspects were also allegedly involved in uploading content targeting Gulf countries.

The spokesperson said the suspects had been booked under various provisions of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016.

Arrests made in multiple Punjab cities

According to the NCCIA, four suspects — Usman, Qamar, Abbas and Tahir Mushtaq — were arrested in Lahore. Three others — Hamid Raza, Imran Afzal and Waqar Ahmed — were taken into custody in Gujranwala.

In Faisalabad, the agency arrested Ismail and Siddiq, while in Multan it apprehended Arshad, Umar, Junaid and Azhar, the spokesperson said.

In a province-wide crackdown against anti-state social media activities, the NCCIA has arrested 13 individuals from different cities of Punjab during the last couple of weeks.

The spokesperson said separate cases had been registered against all of the suspects and that digital evidence had also been recovered from them.

The arrested individuals were involved in sharing various types of content on social media platforms against the state institutions and the government. This content not only hurt public sentiments but also had a negative impact on state order and governance.

He further said the cases would be pursued on merit and dealt with in accordance with the law.

NCCIA stance and recent developments

The agency said misuse of social media, especially the spread of provocative or misleading material against state institutions, was a punishable offence.

The development comes days after the NCCIA arrested a man in Lahore on April 30 for allegedly posting anti-army and anti-state content on social media platforms.

Earlier this year, a sessions court sentenced lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her spouse, Hadi Ali Chattha, to a combined 17 years in prison in a case relating to what was described as disseminating anti-state content on social media.

Rights concerns noted in annual report

In its annual report, Amnesty International said amendments to online speech and anti-terrorism laws in Pakistan had significantly affected freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, resulting in the detention of journalists, activists and opposition members.

The latest arrests come amid continuing scrutiny of online speech-related enforcement in the country.