Journalist Matiullah Jan booked in terrorism case as Aemend, HRCP call for release

• FIR registered under various sections of CrPC, ATA and CNSA.
• Lawyer Imaan Mazari claims Matiullah Jan was in fact "missing".
• US-based Committee to Protect Journalists condemns arrest.

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Thursday approved a two-day physical remand of senior journalist Matiullah Jan in relation to a case registered against him at Islamabad's Margalla Police Station.

Jan, whose arrest was confirmed by the Islamabad Police earlier in the day, was presented before ATC judge Tahir Abbas Sipra, wherein Prosecutor Raja Naveed requested a 30-day physical remand.

However, the court rejected the request and granted police a two-day physical remand of the journalist. 

Matiullah, after being arrested, was then shifted to Margalla Police Station, cops said. However, human rights lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Haazir said that he was at the lock-up when she went to visit him.

Earlier, in a post on X, his family said that he had been "abducted" from the parking of PIMS at around 11pm by "unmarked abductors in an unmarked vehicle".

"I demand that my father be let go immediately and his family immediately be informed of his whereabouts," the post added.

Taking to social media, Mazari has said that the journalist, who is also her client, was "missing".

"After pleading with police at Margalla Police Station to allow us access to our client Matiullah Jan, we were finally allowed in. I checked hawalaat/lock up myself and the ppl [people] locked up inside confirmed to me that right before we came, the police took Matiullah Jan. He is missing," Mazari wrote on her official X handle, formerly Twitter.

Allowed to meet family

Meanwhile, following his detention, Jan was transferred to the Margalla Police Station and was later presented before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad.

The hearing was presided over by ATC judge Tahir Abbas Sipra wherein Prosecutor Raja Naveed requested a 30-day physical remand for Jan.

Arguing before the court, Defence lawyer Hadi Ali dismissed the charges against Jan as absurd, arguing for his discharge from the case. Ali also submitted an affidavit from journalist Saqib Bashir to support his defence.

Judge Sipra questioned whether a journalist's profession could exempt them from potential criminal liability, saying: "Should I decide based on personal beliefs? Can a journalist never commit a crime simply because they criticise the government?"

Prosecutor Naveed argued that the court must determine how the alleged drugs found on Jan came into his possession. His remarks about recovering drugs from Jan led to laughter in the courtroom.

Naveed then emphasised the need to fully investigate narcotics cases, citing high court guidelines.

Bashir, who also took the stand, expressed disbelief, remarking: "It's surprising that [Matiullah] Jan is accused of using drugs."

Judge Sipra's lighthearted comment, "I didn't call him an addict," again sparked laughter in court.

Bashir recounted that during questioning, he and Jan both stated they did not smoke, yet an ice-related case was fabricated.

He further criticised the misuse of anti-terrorism laws, saying: "The ATC is for terrorists, not journalists."

Judge Sipra also commented on the changing nature of journalism, noting: "The introduction of screens alongside pen has complicated matters."

Judge Sipra allowed Jan to meet with his family and later announced the verdict granting his two-day physical remand.

It is to be noted that according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Pakistan ranked 12th out of the 13 worst offenders on CPJ’s Global Impunity Index in 2024.

At least 39 journalists have been murdered in Pakistan since 1992. In the vast majority of these cases, 36, nobody has been held accountable, whereas, in three cases, there has been some, though not full, accountability, as per the NGO.

Earlier in 2020, Jan went missing in Islamabad and returned home after nearly 12 hours.

FIR lodged at Margalla Police Station

Hours after his disappearance, a first information report (FIR) was registered against Jan at the Margalla Police Station in Islamabad. The FIR said that he was arrested at the E-9 checkpoint in the federal capital.

The FIR was registered under CrPC's Section 279 (rash driving or riding on a public way), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 382 (theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint in order to the committing of the theft), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees), 506 (criminal intimidation), while 7ATA (terrorism-related section) and a narcotics-related section was also included.

As per the contents of the FIR, the incident began when police signalled Jan's vehicle to stop at a checkpoint late last night. Instead of complying, the FIR alleges, Jan drove his car towards the officers, injuring Constable Mudassir, who was on duty at the time.

Furthermore, the FIR claims that he forcibly took official weaponry from the police and issued threats to the officers.

The FIR also accuses the journalist of being under the influence of drugs at the time of his arrest, with the substance "ice" reportedly recovered from his vehicle.

Condemnations 

The development has warranted condemnations from journalistic quarters, with media organisations urging the incumbent government not to "pressurise journalists and detain them unlawfully".

The Association of Electronic Media Editors and News Directors (AEMEND) condemned Matiullah Jan’s arrest, calling the charges against him "absurd" and stating that these accusations represent a "new tactic against journalists."

In its statement, Aemend said that the senior journalist was detained along with fellow journalist Saqib Bashir from PIMS Hospital. "While Saqib Bashir was released shortly afterwards, Jan was transferred to Margalla Police Station, where he was formally arrested under a case."

The FIR accuses him of bizarre allegations such as seizing official weapons, threatening to kill, and injuring a constable with a vehicle.

The association noted that these charges reflect ulterior motives, adding that previously, journalists faced false cases under cybercrime and other laws, which courts dismissed as baseless while implementing measures to protect journalists.

It highlighted that multiple incidents of "illegal detentions, threats, and pressure against journalists, including Jan, are on record," adding that these incidents portray the deteriorating state of freedom of expression in Pakistan.

Aemend emphasised that while the law applies to everyone, the repeated targeting of journalists shows that illegal actions are being disguised under the law to deprive the public of their right to information and to suppress free speech.

It urged the government to stop "registering false FIRs, pressurizing journalists, and detaining them unlawfully."

Meanwhile, the American non-governmental organisation (NGO) Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) also condemned Jan's arrest.