Last week, investigators in the anti-judiciary banner case obtained the non-bailable arrest warrants of the owner of a news channel and his employees, including the anchorperson and other team members of a talk-show.

The investigators suspect that they were behind the banners which were found hanging in different parts of the city, including the Red Zone, in April last year. A senior police officer close to the investigation told Dawn that four talk-shows were broadcast about the judiciary by the news channel from April 20 to April 28.

“On the very next day of the first programme, the banners were found hanging in the city,” he added. On Tuesday last, the investigators from the Aabpara police station approached the area magistrate and obtained the non-bailable warrants of the owner, anchorperson, senior producer, social media and IT manager, programme producer and non-linear editor,” he added.

Khalid Awan,the station house officer (SHO) of Aabpara, told Dawn that the TV channel owner and the staff of the talk-show were accused of abetment in maligning a Supreme Court judge.

When asked if they were the accused or may identify the actual accused in the case, the SHO said the police got their warrants for alleged abetment in the case. “There are evidences against them and the police have also got the recording of all the four programmes from Pemra which are enough to prove their connivance in the case,” he added.

He said notices would be issued to those whose warrants had been obtained before they were arrested. The notices will be delivered to them in next few days asking them to furnish sureties. In case of their failure, they would be arrested, he added.

However, another police officer supervising the investigation added: “The non-bailable arrest warrants can be challenged in the superior court and the accused can get bail from there,” adding under such circumstances the suspects would be bound to appear before the investigators.

It may be noted that after the banners were found hanging in the city, the Aabpara police started an investigation and rounded up scores of painters. Later, a painter was arrested from the Banni area of Rawalpindi.

During the interrogation, the painter said he was provided written materials and ordered to prepare 15 banners by a citizen.

The painter stated that his two staff later displayed the banners at the locations in the capital city identified by the man who had placed the orders. Later, the police also arrested the man who had ordered the banners. The arrested man told the police that his sentiments were hurt after watching a blasphemous programme aired by the news channel.

He said he learnt through the media that the case against the news channel was being heard by the Supreme Court judge, who was a relative of the TV channel’s owner. As a result, he said he decided to display the banners against the channel and the judge. Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2015

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