Arrest Follows ATC Bail Dismissal
Prominent human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, were arrested by police in Islamabad on Friday. Sources indicate the arrest was made on warrants issued by an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in connection with a case related to an altercation outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Details of the Detention
The couple was apprehended while traveling in an IHC Bar van en route to a district court session. Police confiscated their mobile phones before transferring them to a police station. The arrest stems from a case registered on the complaint of IHC Bar President Wajid Ali Gilani concerning a heated exchange during a protest outside the bar’s office.
An ATC had dismissed their bail applications on Thursday due to their absence at the hearing. Both individuals had previously filed for pre-arrest bail in the matter.
Legal Complexities and Bar Association Response
In a separate but concurrent legal proceeding, Mazari and Chattha were also summoned to appear before Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka on Friday in a controversial tweets case. They face charges filed by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, accused of attempting to incite divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts.
Judge Majoka had issued arrest warrants for the couple earlier this month over repeated non-appearance, though the IHC restored their bail this week. The couple has previously filed an application expressing distrust in Judge Majoka and seeking a transfer of the tweets case.
Reacting swiftly to the arrest, the Islamabad High Court Bar Association declared a strike, condemning the detention as “illegal” and calling for protests.
This is a developing story.
