Imaan Mazari challenges Matiullah Jan’s physical remand in IHC

ISLAMABAD: A petition was filed in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) today against the physical remand of senior journalist Matiullah Jan, demanding the court to declare it null and void.

The plea, filed by Matiullah’s counsel Imaan Mazari, challenged the Anti-Terrorism Court judge Tahir Abbas Sipra’s verdict, mentioning that Jan was arrested in a false and fabricated case.

The petitioner requested the court to hear the petition today as after this petition will become ineffective.

Yesterday, the Anti-Terrorism Court sent a journalist on a two-day physical remand in a case registered at Margalla police station. He was taken into custody over terrorism and possessing narcotics charges. The FIR was filed on the complaint of Superintendent of Police Asif Ali.

The FIR mentioned that Matiullah in his white Toyota Yaris injured the police constable Mudassir intentionally after he was signaled to stop at the checkpost on Margalla Road in the E-9 sector.

It claimed that Jan was intoxicated at the time, whereas, police recovered 246 grams of narcotic methamphetamine (crystal meth) from his vehicle. The case was registered at 3:20 am, nearly an hour after his alleged abduction took place.

Earlier, his family reported that Matiullah Jan, critical of the government’s handling of PTI protests, was apprehended along with fellow journalist Saqib Bashir at 11 pm on Wednesday. While Bashir was eventually released, Jan’s whereabouts remained unclear, his family said in a statement on social media.