ISLAMABAD: A district and sessions court in Islamabad on Saturday convicted human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, in a case linked to controversial social media posts, sentencing both to 17 years in prison.
The case stems from alleged “anti-state” posts and reposts on X (formerly Twitter). The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) had registered the case in August last year under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, claiming the content was aimed at creating divisions and maligning state institutions.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka announced the verdict. Mazari and Chattha appeared before the court via video link, during which Mazari alleged mistreatment in custody and announced a boycott of the proceedings. No defence lawyers were present at the time of the verdict, while special prosecutors Barrister Fahad and Rana Usman attended the hearing.
In its detailed written order, the court said the accused had described Pakistan as a “terrorist state,” termed detentions under anti-terror laws illegal, praised proscribed organisations and individuals, and accused the judiciary of bias. The court held that while criticism of the state is protected in a democracy, the accused crossed the permissible limits of dissent and entered the realm of subversion, thereby committing offences under Sections 9, 10 and 26-A of Peca.
However, the court acquitted both of the charge under Section 11 of Peca, noting that none of the witnesses testified that the posts promoted sectarian, racial, or interfaith hatred.
Under the verdict, both were sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment under Section 9 with a fine of Rs5 million each, 10 years under Section 10 with a fine of Rs30 million each, and five years under Section 26-A with a fine of Rs1 million each. In case of default, additional jail terms were imposed. The order did not specify whether the sentences would run concurrently.
The court directed that the convicts remain in jail to serve their sentences while extending them the benefit of Section 382-B of the Criminal Procedure Code, allowing their period of detention to be counted towards the sentence.
During the hearing, Mazari accused authorities of denying food and water in custody and questioned the presence of media in court. She later announced a boycott, after which both she and her husband stood up and left their seats during the video-link proceedings.
The couple had been arrested a day earlier near the Serena Hotel underpass while heading to the district courts. An anti-terrorism court later sent them on a 14-day judicial remand in a separate case.
Former human rights minister Shireen Mazari, Imaan’s mother, alleged that the couple were covertly produced before the anti-terrorism court, denied access to lawyers, and subjected to violence during and after arrest. Journalists at the scene also claimed police manhandled the couple and seized mobile phones from reporters.
The arrests and convictions drew condemnation from legal and political figures, including Islamabad High Court Bar Association President Wajid Gilani and former senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokar, who said the application of terrorism charges over a peaceful protest undermined the purpose of anti-terrorism laws.
