LAHORE: Anchorperson Orya Maqbool Jan was arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Lahore on Thursday for his social media posts related to the Mubarak Sani case, according to his lawyer.
Advocate Mian Ali Ashfaq confirmed that Jan was detained by the FIA’s cybercrime wing at their Gulberg office and is scheduled to appear before a judicial magistrate today.
“The FIA has no jurisdiction in this matter, and we will present strong arguments,” said Advocate Ashfaq, who also noted that they have not been provided with details of the first information report (FIR).
Supreme Court Hears Mubarak Sani Case Today
The Supreme Court is hearing the Punjab government’s appeal against its July 24 ruling in the Mubarak Sani case. The plea requests the Court to review its February 6 order, which stated that the right to profess religion and religious freedom, as guaranteed by the Constitution, is subject to law, morality, and public order.
The application, filed through the prosecutor general of Punjab on Saturday, has been scheduled for hearing by a three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.
The plea argues that certain parts of the July 24 judgment, particularly paragraph 49, need correction as they appear inconsistent with binding precedents set by the Federal Shariat Court’s 1985 verdict in Mujib-ur-Rehman versus the government of Pakistan and the Supreme Court’s 1993 verdict in Zaheer-ud-Din versus the State case.
The application asserts that some observations in other parts of the judgment seem to contradict these precedents.
Protests and Police Response
On Monday, protesters attempted to breach Supreme Court security after Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz-i-Nabuwat organized a demonstration demanding the withdrawal of the Court’s verdict in the Mubarak Sani case. Police responded with baton charges and teargas to prevent the protesters from advancing. Earlier, the protesters had set up a stage at Express Chowk for speeches. The following day, capital police registered a case against over 6,000 protesters for entering the Red Zone.
