Imaan Mazari's husband arrested outside Islamabad court in tweet case

Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, husband of lawyer and activist Imaan Mazari, was arrested outside a local court in Islamabad on Wednesday in a case related to alleged controversial social media posts concerning the state and national security institutions.

The arrest followed a non-bailable warrant issued earlier in the day by Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka after Chattha failed to appear for the hearing. The judge also ordered the cancellation of his bail bonds.

“In my view, Hadi Ali Chattha did not submit the bail bonds,” Judge Majoka remarked while directing the investigation officer to arrest and present the suspect in court the following day.

According to the court order, the case was scheduled for framing of charges and prosecution evidence. “Hadi Ali Chattha, accused, has intentionally not appeared in court. Hence, his bail bonds are forfeited and a non-bailable warrant of arrest be issued against him for tomorrow,” the order stated.

When Chattha later arrived at the court, the judge said the matter would be taken up on Thursday. He was subsequently detained outside the court premises.

Imaan Mazari has also been nominated as a co-accused in the same case. Last month, the same court issued non-bailable warrants for both Mazari and Chattha.

According to the FIR registered by the National Cybercrime Investigation Agency, the couple is accused of using social media to promote divisions on linguistic grounds. The case was filed under Sections 9, 10, 11, and 26 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016.